Jaborandi
by Alexandria-likethecityinEgypt
Summary: The countdown has begun! With only a day to track the cure for a poison through the Brazilian jungle, the mission becomes a quest for survival for everyone with the other two team members hampered by either injury or inhibitor collar. What's that they say about the jungle? Oh, yeah, "Everything in it is out to kill you!" Season 1. T for Language & Peril. H/C.
1. Chapter 1

**Here is my Young Justice contest entry . . . Believe it or not, I started plotting this story exactly one week ago.**

 **WARNING: Language . . .**

* * *

It was supposed to be covert mission, but weren't they all? In and out, but since when has it ever been that simple? Wally didn't know if it was just bad luck or if they were cursed - or maybe they just needed to learn to be less impulsive. He kind of thought that might be the case with him. He glanced over at Superboy struggling to pull off the inhibitor collar around his neck and thought that it might be the case for Conner as well.

For Kid, this mission had started out as an adventure. He had never been to the tropical rainforests of Brazil before. Due to the remoteness of their target, they had been forced to hike in. Wally could have managed to get in and out twelve minutes, start to finish, except his expertise didn't include computers. Even Conner might have slogged the distance in a day, but again, his job was more about being the muscle than handling the tricky, delicate work of hacking and espionage. Wally looked to his other side at where Robin sat with his knees up and his arms resting on them. The disgusted look on his friend's face spoke volumes. Although, it might have taken the younger boy a few days to accomplish the task, he would have managed it without getting caught – _if_ it weren't for the lack of subtlety of his more impulsive teammates.

Conner roared angrily, slamming his fists onto the concrete floor. With the inhibitor collar activated, he barely disturbed the dust. The clone blew out his breath and leaned back against the wall, his chains rattling with his movement.

Robin glanced over at Wally with concern. "How are you doing? Are you okay?"

Wally stretched out his leg carefully in front of him. One couldn't tell it by looking at it, but he had broken several bones in his foot and had a severely sprained ankle. He would have taken off his boot to check it out had Robin not warned him that he would never get it back on. At the moment, it felt like his foot was about to burst out of the boot on its own, but the footwear provided the support he needed to keep the worst of the pain in check. Besides, if they hoped to escape and hike back to civilization, he would need the protection it provided him.

One did not hike in a tropical rainforest barefoot if one was not a native . . . And, maybe not even then.

What was it they said about the rainforest? Oh yeah - everything in it was out to kill you!

And it _had_ \- almost succeeded, that is. Although, if the vines that he had tripped over hadn't been capable of movement, Wally might have managed to avoid them. The rumors that had Bats sending the three teammates into the wilds of the Amazonian rainforest had been about a facility that was reportedly creating weapons for bioterrorism, however, nobody had said anything about Poison Ivy being on the company payroll.

 _Surprise_!

Easy on the eyes, but hard on the heart, Poison Ivy was facilitating the growth of plants to aid in the biological soup that the scientists were designing for their employers, people whose plans included the depopulation the planet. Like Anthrax and Influenza weren't bad enough on their own, these guys were adding to the already nasty effects of the diseases certain specialized poisons to the genetic mix to create a super-virulent death-strain that killed quickly and spread person-to-person in an aerosol form. Ivy had tried to describe the spread of the new biological weapon to them, explaining it as a type of pollination but, whatever . . . Wally liked science, but biology wasn't his subject of choice. What he took away from it was this, the stuff would kill you _and_ the people over in the next town, taking anywhere from a few hours to a few days to do the deed. Not enough time for disaster teams to reverse engineer a cure before thousands - heck, hundreds of thousands, maybe more - would die.

"Kid?"

"Don't talk to me," Wally barked at him. "This is all my fault."

"How do you get that?" Robin asked him.

" _You_ didn't get caught," Wally groused. " _I_ did. If I hadn't screwed up my foot, you wouldn't have had to give yourself up."

Conner grunted. "You weren't the only one. Poison Ivy's vines entangled me as fast as I could break them. She just walked up and snapped on this damned collar on me like I was her damned dog and I couldn't do a thing to stop her!" His voice rose as he spoke.

Conner sharing the blame didn't make Wally feel any better. Sighing, Conner rested his head against the wall and looked up at the ceiling. There were cracks in it, put there by encroaching plants. Rain poured into their cell in streams. The three of them had sat in the damp, uncomfortable cell all night and all morning without seeing anyone but one guard who had thrown them chunks of stale flatbread. Ivy didn't even consider them dangerous enough to warrant even a guard each. Why would she when both Kid Flash and Superboy had been put out of commission with such ease.

Robin and Conner had given most of their food to Kid in hopes of the extra calories would stimulate his metabolism into healing him faster, but it hadn't done much toward that goal. In fact, Wally's stomach was growling again.

"I bet Superman wouldn't have gotten caught," Conner muttered in frustration.

Robin frowned at his defeatist tone. "No, you're right. Superman would have caught Ivy, but then, she would have kissed him and made him her slave."

Conner frowned back. "What?"

"It's happened before. Ivy's lips are poison," Robin told them. "She can kill you or enslave you with just a kiss. Superman nearly killed Batman the first time she tried it."

Wally thought about that. "So, why didn't she just enslave Superboy then? Why did she choose to use the collar?"

Robin shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe she thought . . ."

"Maybe, _she thought_ she preferred men to little boys," Ivy interrupted, her voice echoing slightly in the barren room.

Wally's mouth dropped open as he gaped. He couldn't help it. She was amazingly beautiful while he was fifteen and hormonal. So what if her skin was tinged a pale, mint-green; she was built like a Greek goddess. She had vibrant red hair falling over her shoulders in luxurious waves and stood before them clothed in nothing but a few strategically-placed leaves.

Back in the States, it would be autumn right now, Wally thought dreamily. _Falling leaves_ . . . He sighed. Mother Nature had never looked so good.

"I was feeling a little bored," she said. "I thought we might play a game."

"Not interested," Robin snapped, scowling.

Wally closed his mouth abruptly as reality intruded upon his fantasy. He had a feeling that Poison Ivy's idea of games and _his_ idea of games weren't the same.

She pouted, and kneeled down beside the Boy Wonder. "Don't be like Bats," she cooed. "He's got that stick shoved so far up his . . . Well, let's just say, he needs to learn how to relax and have some fun." Ivy ran a hand through Robin's hair as she whispered in his ear seductively. "I bet _you_ know how to have fun, don't you, little bird?"

Her other hand played with the fastenings on the boy's tunic, unhooking the top couple as her fingers walked their way across his exposed chest. Robin jerked himself away from her as far as his chains would allow.

Ivy stood up, laughing, amused by the reaction she had gotten from the young hero. "Oh, don't worry, Boy Wonder. Although, I might rob the occasional bank, I _don't_ rob cradles."

Wally's mouth went dry when she stepped in front of him. She stared down at his foot. It wasn't difficult to tell that it was injured, what with the way the boot was strained around the swollen appendage. She set one delicate foot on the toe of his boot and smiled at him. Wally licked his lips nervously. What was she going to do? Women confused the hell out of him in the normal course of things. Poison Ivy, however, was in a league of her own.

"Does it hurt?" She asked him. "I could kiss it and make it all better," she offered innocently.

While Wally's head spun at the idea, Robin sputtered, "Only if he wants gangrene!"

She smirked at the younger boy and suddenly pushed on Wally's foot; forcing it down sideways. A sharp, grinding pain shot up his leg and he yelled. Conner jerked on his chains.

"Leave him alone!" Superboy shouted at her.

"Hmm," Ivy hummed as she moved toward the clone. "Yummy. What I wouldn't do to have your - daddy? - under my green thumb. The big blue and red _is_ your daddy, isn't he?"

Conner's face flushed. Superman had yet to acknowledge him as his clone, let alone as something as intimate as his son.

"What do you think?" she asked him. "Do you think daddy would rush to rescue you, if I were to put you under my spell? What would he give me to get _you_ back, I wonder?"

His eyes narrowed dangerously. "Not a damned thing."

One crimson eyebrow rose in patent disbelief. "The apple of his eye? Somehow, I doubt that very much."

Conner snorted. "Hardly. Shows how much you know, plant girl."

She shrugged her shoulders, unconcerned, and turned as though to leave. Her hips swayed alluringly as she walked back to the cell door. Wally swallowed audibly. It was almost enough to make him forget the pain in his foot . . . Almost, but not quite. His hormones weren't raging so much as to overwhelm his sense of self-preservation. He understood perfectly well that Poison Ivy was exactly that - poison.

"Okay, kiddies, here's what I propose." She smiled at them. "I'm going to let you go."

Wally's eyes widened in surprise. "Seriously?"

"What's the catch?" Robin frowned at her, ever suspicious.

"No catch," she promised, but then laughed again. "Oh, okay, maybe just one little catch. I'm going to let you all go," she repeated. "You can run away back to your mentors and _parents_ ," she glinted at Superboy. "I won't do anything to stop you. But remember, the rainforest is a very hazardous place, even without my influence. If the three of you can make it out of here alive, then your lives are my gift to you. Go in peace."

"And if not?" Robin asked.

"Why then, you'll die, of course." Ivy sputtered at the obvious. Sighing heavily, she said, "Look, I'm letting you go. If you live, good for you. If you die, it's no skin off my nose, but you'll do it under _my_ conditions."

"And those are?" Conner asked, glaring.

"No utility belts." Ivy glanced at Robin as she ticked each condition off on her fingers. "No gloves and no boots."

"Kid's foot is broken!" Robin exclaimed. "He wouldn't stand a chance out in the jungle without his boots."

"Not my problem." She pursed her lips as she regarded Superboy next. "The collar stays put," she told him. "I have plenty more stashed away. Consider it a present in honor of your visit. If you make it out of here, you will do so without the benefit of your powers."

Robin was shaking his head. "Fine. I'll go without my boots, but Kid Flash keeps his. He's at a disadvantage as it is being injured."

"What makes you think this is a negotiation?" Ivy smirked.

"Everything is a negotiation," Robin countered. "What would you want in order to let Kid keep his boots?"

Wally looked at Robin in alarm. "Rob, no . . . It's okay. I can do this without my boots."

Robin didn't even glance in his direction. "Name it, Ivy."

"You don't have anything left to negotiate with, baby bird," Poison Ivy said, but even so, she was tapping her finger on her chin in thought. "But, I suppose we could up the ante a bit, make it more interesting."

"Rob, stop! What are you doing?" Wally hissed.

"KF, you _need_ those boots." Robin insisted.

"I'm a fast healer," he reminded his friend. "I'll probably be back to normal in the time it takes us to get back to town." _Although, not without extra calories_ . . . Wally kept that knowledge to himself. Besides, Robin and Conner already knew this about speedsters, but there was no reason to clue Poison Ivy in to his weaknesses.

"It's a deal. I'll even let _all_ of you keep your boots," Ivy stated magnanimously. "And, in exchange for my generosity, you must find a plant."

"Why?" Conner asked, suspicious.

Ivy smiled. "Trust me. You'll want to find it."

"Trust you?" Wally sputtered incredulously.

"What plant?" Robin asked, pragmatic as always.

"The natives call it jaborandi," Ivy instructed them. "It is a shrubby tree that has star-shaped fruit and large, feathery leaves. You can find it in the surrounding jungle if you search hard enough for it."

"What do we need the plant for?" Conner asked. He had obviously had enough of Ivy's plants to last a lifetime.

"Because . . ." she sang happily.

Raising her hand to her lips, she appeared to blow a kiss at Robin. There was a whisper of a sound and, suddenly, Robin was slapping a hand over his collarbone with a hiss. He tugged, pulling free a tiny dart. He stared at it in surprise for a second before dropping it on the floor with nerveless fingers.

"Rob," Wally yelped.

"What did you do to him?" Conner snarled. He yanked at his chains futilely.

Smirking, Ivy held up a tiny blowgun in her fingers. "Because," she continued, "it is the antidote to belladonna poisoning, the lovely and quite _deadly_ nightshade."

* * *

 **REACTIONS? Reviews, reviews, review! ;D**

 **A/N:**

 **Okay, I bought a _Writer's Guide to Poisons_ many years ago and have been dying to use it in one of my stories, but never seemed to come up with a plot for it - Until now! I chose belladonna (also known as deadly nightshade in some parts of the world) for several reasons. **

**One reason is because the symptoms are cool . . . Alright, not actually cool in real life, but fun to write about.**

 **Another reason is because of the symptoms it doesn't have . . . Specifically, diarrhea. I so did not want to write about our boy having to cop a squat every 15 minutes behind a tree. I'm pretty sure you didn't want to read about it either.**

 **Also, belladonna kills quickly, but not too quickly. It's toxicity level is a 6 which is considered to be the highest on the toxicity chart that runs from a 1 to level 6. Without treatment, you _will_ die.**

 **Lastly is because I could fit the antidote into my plot. Jaborandi is the name of a real plant found in the Brazilian jungles. It looks how it is described above. The antidote to belladonna is derived from the jaborandi plant's leaves. When refined the product produced is also listed as a medical poison. Jaborandi produces nearly the exact opposite symptoms of those of belladonna.**

 **I'll explain more as the story goes along.**


	2. Chapter 2

**WARNING:** **Um . . . I can't remember. Might be a swear word, but I wouldn't swear to it!**

* * *

It was mid-afternoon when they left the compound behind with Kid Flash between them. Wally tried to lean more heavily on Superboy because, despite his lack of super strength, Conner was still stronger than both Wally and Robin. Robin needed to conserve his strength. Wally worried that too much exertion might bring on the symptoms of the poisoning quicker than it would have otherwise.

Had Superboy not had the inhibitor collar or Kid Flash a broken foot, either of them could have carried the younger boy. Wally could have had him back in town at the nearest hospital in a half an hour, tops! But as it was, even poisoned, Robin was making better time than he was.

"We need to look for something to work as a crutch," Robin was saying, still thinking ahead.

" _Argh_! This is ridiculous," Wally complained loudly. "If my foot wasn't broken . . ."

"But it is, Walls, and we need to stop playing 'what if', and start concentrating on how we're going to get out of here."

"I can carry him faster than he could hobble with a crutch," Conner said.

Robin didn't say anything, but Wally could fill in the words he was unwilling to admit. Wally needed a crutch because, if they couldn't find the plant Ivy had spoken of, Conner would be busy carrying Robin instead.

He frowned as he tried to recall what he knew about belladonna poisoning. Dry mouth, double vision, loud heartbeat . . . What else? Death, of course, but there were other symptoms. Wally remembered there was a long list of them, and he was pretty sure the ones that he couldn't recall were much worse than the ones he could.

"What do you know about belladonna?" Wally asked. He suspected Rob knew exactly what symptoms he would be experiencing. Batman was always quizzing him on stuff like this.

Robin didn't look at him, but continued to search for a suitable crutch. It wasn't looking too great at the moment. The canopy overhead meant that the ground didn't have much on it. The tree branches were all high above them seeking out the sun. As it was, the area they traveled was thick with shade-loving vegetation like hostas and ferns. The ground beneath the plants was littered with dead leaves, mossy rocks, and roots, but unfortunately not much else. Neither the shoots of new tree growth nor the few hanging vines available to them were strong enough to support Kid's weight.

"I know enough," Robin muttered, grim-faced.

Wally was suddenly scared. It had taken them _two days_ to hike here when the three of them were healthy. It would likely take twice that to get back. They had been relatively safe on the trip in with a few necessary supplies, Robin's utility belt, and Conner's super strength and senses warning them of potential dangers.

Ivy had taken their comlinks; not that they had worked in the thick rainforest or jungle beyond. The guards had confiscated what supplies they had during their search, so neither was there a map. They didn't even have a compass to point them the right way. The trio just started walking away from the compound in the general direction that they had approached it.

Even if he and Conner could trudge the entire way back without succumbing to the dangers of the forest, there was no way Robin would make it without that plant. Wally glanced around at the surrounding vegetation. Nothing resembling the plant that Ivy had described was visible. If he remembered correctly, the rainforest didn't convert into densely packed jungle until after they crossed the river . . .

 _The river_!

"How are we going to get across the river?" Wally blurted out the question. "Conner jumped across before, and I carried you over the water!"

Conner frowned. "I didn't think about that."

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," Robin gritted out.

"That's the problem, Rob! There is no bridge to cross!" Wally's voice was edging toward hysteria. He knew it, but couldn't seem to stop it.

The river was at least a five hour hike from where they were now. Robin's symptoms would be kicking in by then. His best friend was going to die because of him! He stumbled to a halt, forcing Conner to stop or drag him. Robin walked several more feet before swinging around to face him.

"What are you doing, Wally? We need to keep walking!" Rob's frustration made his voice crack a little.

He shook his head. "No, _you_ need to," he said. "You and Conner need to go on without me."

Robin scowled at him. "What? Don't be stupid . . ."

"No, Rob, listen to me," Wally told him a little desperately. "Conner's still stronger than the both of us. You're light. You don't weigh much at all. He can carry you and make better time. The two of you can make the river before nightfall, maybe get across."

"You're talking crazy! We're not going to leave you, Wally!" Robin walked back. " _I'm_ not going to leave you."

"Rob, without that plant, you're going to _die_ ," Wally grabbed his friend's shoulders. "You don't have an option. Those symptoms are going to start soon, and then you won't be able to even walk on your own, let alone help search your cure!"

"You're right," Conner said suddenly.

Robin gaped at him. "You can't be seriously agreeing with him! We have to stick together for as long as possible. If and when my symptoms get bad enough, then we'll . . . You will both have to make a choice as to whether to go on without me or not. But I have hours left before I start to feel anything. Let's not waste them!"

Conner shook his head. "No. I meant he's right in that I'm still strong." He looked frustrated. "Not Superboy strong with the collar on, but I can carry Wally on my back and you in my arms if I have to."

Robin smiled. "You may have to do that soon enough, Conner. Don't waste your strength yet."

Conner bent down in front of Wally. "Climb on," he told the speedster. "We can pick up our pace and arrive at the river sooner if I carry you now."

"You're going to get tired sooner, Conner," Wally objected, but not strenuously. He didn't have a death wish.

"I'll rest when I have to, but you're right in that we need to make better time," Conner said. He remained in position, looking back over his shoulder. "Come on, West! You're holding us up."

Wally nodded. "Okay, fine. You guys win."

He gingerly climbed onto Conner's back; hissing slightly when the clone stood and adjusted his weight.

"Is anyone else hungry?" Kid asked as his stomach made a loud growling noise.

Robin chuckled. "Hold on, Kid Stomach. It might be a good idea to wait until we get to the river to catch some fish. I can't remember what is poisonous or not out here."

Wally groaned; laying his head on Conner's shoulder in mock despair. He didn't have to eat yet, but he would soon. His speedster metabolism combined with his injury was going to make this journey extremely uncomfortable.

* * *

Six hours later, Robin tried to swallow, but there was no spit left in his mouth. Even catching rainwater filtered through the trees in his mouth hadn't helped much. It had rained four times since they started back. It seemed the height of irony that he was soaked to the skin on the outside, but felt like a desert on the inside.

He wasn't stupid. He knew that dry mouth was one of the first symptoms he could expect. He wanted to complain that it was too soon, but no, it was right on time.

The sound of the river reached them. They were close. It had taken longer to reach it coming back. The light had noticeably shifted over the course of the day, and dusk would be settling in soon. It was relatively dark beneath the thick canopy overhead. Yet, despite the coverage from above, shafts of sunlight still managed to find its way through the thick foliage and streamed through to the forest floor in tiny spotlights. Dust motes and insects flitted through the beams of light, looking almost magical; like sparkles and tiny fairies were dancing around them as they walked.

Robin blinked at his thoughts.

 _Sparkles and fairies_? _Holy hallucinations, Batman_!

He needed to get his head back in the game. Stay focused. They hadn't even crossed the river yet, let alone found any sign of the jaborandi plant Robin needed to counteract the poison in his system. Getting to the other side of the river was his only hope. If the plant was anywhere, it would be there . . . somewhere.

Drops of water were falling from overhead. Robin stopped and opened his mouth. It helped him swallow, but his mouth was dry again immediately. He let a few more drops fall into his mouth, but didn't swallow this time; just held it there. Maybe that would provide him a little relief.

He'd be at the river pretty soon, but without the water purification tablets he kept in his utility belt, Robin didn't trust drinking it. Last thing any of them needed was dysentery. Luckily, a rainforest provided a lot of rain. They would just have to continue to get their water from the sky. Coming through the vegetation, it was still chancy, but not the guarantee of trouble that drinking groundwater was bound to be.

He looked ahead at his teammates. Conner had held up admirably well under the circumstances. He had a lot more stamina, even with the collar on, than Robin could have hoped. They had only had to stop for the Conner once during their trek. They had been forced to stop for him all the other times; and he had needed to stop to rest more often the longer they hiked. Even now, Conner was beginning to pull away from him. He and Wally probably hadn't realized he was no longer with them.

He moved forward with the intention of catching up when he fell. He had caught himself on his hands and knees, but just barely. Robin's head hung down. His heart was pounding and he was breathing hard. His head spun a little.

He was just so tired. Why did he need to get up again?

Robin thought he heard Wally yell, but it felt almost instantaneous that Conner was kneeling beside him, and helping him to sit.

 _How did they get back to him so soon_?

They had been almost forty yards ahead of him just a moment ago! Robin stared at the lights on Conner's inhibitor collar. It was still activated. Wally was sitting just a few feet away; his eyes huge and his expression concerned.

 _Had he blacked out for a few seconds_? _God, he hoped not_!

"Robin? Robin, are you alright?" Conner was asking him.

Robin had the feeling that this wasn't the first time he had been asked that question.

"Yeah," he said, trying to summon a smile. "Just tripped over some roots or something."

Conner glanced behind Robin. His face turned serious; his mouth turned down.

Robin looked back over his shoulder. Not a root or a pebble in sight. He sighed. The one smooth place during the entire hike, and Robin had tripped over his own feet.

"It's happening, isn't it?" Wally asked worriedly. "You're starting to feel the effects of the poison."

Not a question, but then it didn't have to be. The two of them were looking at him with concern.

"Your face is looking kind of flushed," Conner commented. "Do you need another break?"

He did, but he wasn't going to take one. The river was looming up ahead. He could take a break when they reached it while they figured out how to cross it.

Robin shook his head. "No," he said. "No, I can make it."

He had trouble getting to his feet. The ground seemed to shift under him. Conner took his arm and helped him stand.

"You're tired," he stated. "Let me carry you the rest of the way to the river, at least."

"No," Robin waved him away. "You need to carry Wally. Once we cross the river, we'll be able to find Wally a crutch. Then . . ." he frowned and lowered his head. "Then, you can help me if you want."

"It's not an either/or kind of thing," Conner told him. "The river is close enough that I can carry the both of you."

Conner reached for Robin as he said this, but Robin jumped back; pushing the older boy away. It said something about the collar that Conner stumbled from the simple shove.

"I _said_ I can handle it," Robin yelled suddenly in a burst of anger. "I'm not going to keel over yet. Help Wally instead."

* * *

Conner's brows rose at his teammate's vehemence. He glanced at Wally for help. Wally kept his mouth closed for once, and waved the clone over to him.

"Look, don't take it personally," Wally whispered to him. "Aggression, I remember now, is another symptom. Robin will probably get more irritable as we go along."

Without another word, Conner helped the speedster onto his back once more, and took off toward the river at a jog. They were only about a hundred yards away now. He would set Wally down there and go back for Robin.

Even if the younger boy stubbornly refused to let Conner carry him the rest of the way, he could still walk next to him, in case he 'tripped' again.

Conner hated that blasted collar now more than ever. He was feeling the burn of what he guessed was muscle fatigue; something he had heard others complain of, but never experienced for himself . . . until now. Every time he picked Wally back up, Conner noticed that the other boy felt a little heavier. This, too, had never happened to him before.

He didn't like it.

But he _was_ coming to appreciate his teammates' weaknesses more. That they could feel this way and still soldier on impressed him. Robin had walked the distance from the compound to here almost entirely without complaint. If Robin could do it, so could Superboy . . . inhibitor collar or not.

* * *

 **REACTIONS? Yes, I'm still hoping to hear from you . . . Throw the dog a bone . .**

 **A/N:**

 **Robin's feeling the first symptoms, and believe it or not, one of the worst will be dry mouth . . .**

 **Dry mouth; hot, dry, red skin; urine retention . . . Belladonna shuts down the production of all fluid in your body. You don't make sweat, tears, saliva, urine . . . You will also become constipated, although we don't actually talk about that. (Not that I am squeamish - I'm a nursing assistant. Poop is my life! LOL! At least until I become a famous author and get rich like JK Rowling . . . ) Anyway, as the lack of moisture becomes a bigger issue, you will see exactly what I mean. This mixed with delirium, irritability, and aggressive behavior, uh huh, not a good thing at all.**

 **Also delirium and hallucinations . . . (Told you the symptoms could be fun).**

 **Aggression and irritability.**

 **Disorientation - which means that he can lose all sense of direction literally, balance issues, or confusion and inability to hold a conversation or stay focused. (some of these things will be similar or the same as delirium.)**

 ***He is NOT delusional, however. Delusions refer to mental illness.**

 ***Delirium is confusion, lack of concentration, either intense focus on one thing or checking out of the world altogether by staring off into space, inability to hold conversation kind of goes along with that. You can mutter nonsensical things while awake or asleep or anywhere in between, or just be incommunicado completely.**


	3. Chapter 3

**No Warnings . . .**

* * *

They had to rest and eat. There wasn't a choice in it, although both Wally and Conner both wanted to search for a crossing immediately. Robin pointed out Wally's need to get more calories in his hyper-system or he would become dangerously weak. Conner carrying him helped Wally conserve his energy. That was probably the only reason he hadn't collapsed thus far.

Wally wasn't sure if it had been intentional on the part of Poison Ivy to allow Kid Flash to keep his speed, but he doubted it. Rob thought that she believed Kid had been rendered powerless with his broken foot, but Wally's hands worked just fine. He used a sharp rock to whittle the ends of a couple of saplings that Conner had broken off; shaping crude spears in seconds.

Robin tried to help spear some fish, but the most he had managed was one before his vision blurred too much for him to see his targets. Conner had been far more successful; spearing seven more. Wally used his rock to scale them before starting a fire in a rotted log using friction. He and Robin had cooked them while Conner used what foliage he could to build a makeshift roof over top of some massive tree roots; creating a couple of cozy compartments.

"I still think we should try to cross tonight," Wally insisted.

Robin shook his head; confusion on his face. "Cross? Cross what?"

Wally glanced at him worriedly, and spoke slowly. "The river, Rob. Remember? We need to cross the river in order to find the jaborandi plant for you."

Robin's gaze turned inward, and he nodded, but Wally didn't think he was following the conversation anymore. Conner met his eye, and Wally shook his head and shrugged. He didn't need to see Robin's eyes to know that they would be dilated, and his disorientation was becoming more pronounced. He had snapped at both him and Conner several times over the past hour, even throwing a rock at Wally's head once in a temper. It was a testament to Rob's double vision that it had missed its target by more than a foot. Wally hadn't even bothered dodging it.

It was in a brief moment of clarity that Robin had warned them about the hallucinations.

"Don't repeat anything you might hear me say," he warned them. "I won't be able to control what comes out. Some of it may not make sense, but other things . . . They probably shouldn't be repeated to anyone."

He and Conner had agreed, but Robin seemed to need something more from them.

"Promise me," he whispered, nervously. "You'll keep my secrets?"

"Of course, dude," Wally had assured him. "You don't even have to ask."

Robin grew silent after that; staring off into the darkness intently. It was enough to creep Wally out; expecting something to leap out at them from the shadows.

The interior of the log was burning well and would last until morning, providing much needed warmth during the cool night. It took a little coaxing, but Robin finally crawled between the roots and out from under the wet, dripping branches.

"I'll take first watch," Wally volunteered.

Conner frowned. "I don't need sleep."

"Maybe under normal circumstances, dude, but you look exhausted," he pointed out. "I slept some of the way while you carried me. I'll be good for a while."

Conner narrowed his eyes. "You won't fall asleep before you can wake me, will you? There are too many dangerous creatures out here."

Wally looked back and saw a sleepy Robin holding a conversation with a tree frog. "Honestly? I doubt I'll get any sleep tonight," he admitted.

* * *

Conner seemed to accept that, and moved over to squat down beside their afflicted teammate. "You _do_ remember that frogs don't talk, don't you," he asked Robin.

Robin looked up at him from where he snuggled in the crook of the roots; tilting his head at an angle. "Most frogs don't," he said seriously, "but _this_ one does."

Conner blinked. He could almost believe him. He eyed the bright blue amphibian with renewed interest.

"What's he saying?"

Robin looked back at the colorful, little creature; thankfully not touching its poisonous skin. "He says we shouldn't worry; that Batman is looking for us."

Conner lifted an eyebrow. "Huh, and did he tell you where we can find a jaborandi plant?"

"Yes."

Staring at the frog, Conner asked, "Where?"

"Across the river," Robin said.

 _Well, it had been worth a shot_ , the clone snorted; amused despite the direness of the situation. He crawled in next to Robin; tugging the boy's cape around him to help keep him warm and to protect him from mosquitos. Before he could move back out and into his own slot between the roots, Robin surprised him by curling up against him. The boy snuggled into his chest, and sighed.

"Thanks, Bruce," the younger boy whispered.

Conner raised both brows in surprise. He knew without asking that ' _Bruce_ ' was one of Robin's secrets. He wondered briefly who this Bruce-guy was to the boy.

Unwilling to disturb the younger boy, Conner threw a protective arm around Robin and tried to relax; allowing the boy to fall sleep against him. At least he wasn't irritable and throwing rocks at them anymore. Conner closed his eyes, but no matter the tired muscles and exhaustion that Wally had accused him of harboring, sleep continued to elude him.

* * *

A few hours later, Conner eased away from the sleeping boy. _It must be near midnight by now_ , he thought. Robin shifted restlessly; muttering something under his breath, but didn't wake. Conner crawled to the end of the root system and sat down a few feet from Wally.

"Do you need a break?" He asked the other boy.

"Not really. Were you able to sleep at all?" Wally poked a stick into the burning log. The fire was low, but still putting off a good amount of heat. He was feeling dryer than he had since the beginning of the mission.

"I think I might have dozed a bit," Conner admitted. "You know, I don't think that Poison Ivy adjusted my collar to dampen my super hearing."

This brought Wally's head around, and his hand reached for his spear. "Why do you say that? Do you hear something suspicious? Beyond the jungle noises, I mean."

Conner frowned. "No, not that. I meant that I can still hear Robin's heartbeat even though I'm sitting a good three feet away from him."

Wally's face fell. "Sorry, but that isn't super hearing, buddy," he told him worriedly. "I can hear it, too."

"What?!" Conner gaped at him; Wally sat another three feet beyond Conner! He spun around to look at Robin. "B-But that's not _normal_ ," he gasped. "I mean, it is for me, but it shouldn't be for you! Is he . . . Is he going to be alright, do you think?"

"We need that plant, Conner," Wally said quietly, "and we're going to need it soon. I doubt that Robin will be able to last much longer than another fifteen hours; eighteen tops, if we're lucky."

The sky should be light enough to start in about five hours. If they waited until then, that gave them only ten hours to find a way to cross the river and then locate the plant. Conner looked at the tangled growth across the river. It would be like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Fear for his friend was a knot in his gut

Conner stood up. Wally craned his neck to look up at him. "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to scout the area along the banks for a way across," Conner said. "Maybe she was able to dampen my hearing, but she didn't have a clue about my eyes."

"I don't understand." Wally waited for Superboy to clarify.

"I think she only calibrated for distance, heat, and X-Ray vision," Conner explained.

"You don't have heat vision, and your X-Ray vision is sketchy at best," Wally remarked.

"True, although the X-Ray vision is improving the more I use it, but you see, Poison Ivy doesn't understand any of that," Conner smiled for the first time since before any of this happened. "I can still see in the dark."

"You can? Why didn't you say anything before?"

"There was still enough light earlier to see by," Conner shrugged. "I didn't discover it until now when I realized I could see the jungle on the other side of the river despite the darkness."

"Then you _can_ do something now!" Wally exclaimed, excitedly. "We don't have to wait until sunrise to start searching!"

"It's not much. I mean, I still don't have my super strength," he reminded him.

"Don't knock yourself, Conner. I'd bet you could still be able to give Aqualad a run for his money despite that inhibitor collar. You may not be able to stop a bullet right now, but you're our best shot if all three of us plan to walk out of here alive."

Wally climbed carefully to his feet. He was still favoring his right foot, but the improvement was dramatic.

"You're getting better," Conner commented. "That's good."

"Eating something helped. That and the fact that I haven't had to exert myself for hours, but I'm going to need more calories if I am to be of any use to you at all tomorrow," Wally said. He put his weight on the injury gingerly. A sharp twinge shot up his leg, but the limb didn't give out. He grinned at the clone. "Not bad. I think that I can work with this."

"No! Don't!" Robin cried out suddenly in his sleep. He curled up tighter under his cape as his nightmares assaulted him. "Don't hurt him! _Batman_!"

Both boys turned in his direction; their smiles disappearing at their teammate's distress.

"I have a feeling that he's going to be pretty out of it when he wakes up," Wally warned.

"But he _will_ wake up," Conner asked, worriedly. "Right?"

"Yeah, I think so. I figure it's been about nine hours since Ivy dosed him," Wally told him. "But we're going to need to get an early start."

"Right," Conner picked up one of the spears and nodded to the one next to Wally. "Keep that handy until I get back. I'll try not to get out of hearing in case you guys need me." He hefted the spear in his hand experimentally. A lot of predators in the jungle were nocturnal.

Wally watched as Superboy walked into the shadows, and felt like the night just got darker. Robin twisted and turned behind him; caught up in the throes of a nightmare, or maybe it was just delirium.

"Good luck," he whispered after him. "We're going to need it." Then he went to go comfort his best friend while he still could.

* * *

Conner jogged along the bank searching for a shallow spot in the river, or a rope bridge, a downed tree; _something_!

He wasn't as fast as he might have been, and although he had rested, Conner felt almost as exhausted as he was before they reached the river. But he was motivated to keep going . . . and he _would_ until he saved his teammates or dropped.

The idea of 'dropping' prematurely had never entered his mind before this experience, but unfortunately, it seemed to be a very real possibility. He pushed onward.

The wilderness around him seemed loud, even at night. He searched the sky, but no hint of sunrise was visible yet. In his desperation to find some means to cross, Conner kind of lost track of how far he had come. He was beginning to worry that he was too far away from the camp and if Wally needed him, he wouldn't hear his call for help. Conner had just decided to turn around when he saw it.

The tree, another fifty yards ahead, was leaning out over the river at a forty-five degree angle. It stretched three-quarters of the way across the water and several of those tough, woody vines stretched from the jungle beyond to the tree; entangled thoroughly in its limbs.

Conner walked over to it and pushed on its trunk. It didn't move; neither did its leaves rustle. He stepped onto the trunk and bounced a bit. Nothing, not the slightest budge. It seemed sturdy enough, he thought, that the three of them might be able to scale it without worry of toppling it into the water. He wasn't sure that Kid Flash was capable of swimming the river yet, and he knew without saying that Robin wouldn't be able to do it, so he had to make certain that this wouldn't end with them falling into the water below.

As he looked down, he noticed the silent movements of a large snake swimming beneath him. He judged it to be nine feet in length, at least. Anacondas were plentiful here. Conner had spotted at least three during their hike yesterday. In the water, the snakes had an advantage of being faster than he or Robin were, and capable of entangling and drowning any of them with ease.

Conner was having to relearn his limits. He was discovering that there were a great many of them now, and he wasn't willing to risk his teammates' lives on his newly questionable ability to save both boys from drowning should the worst happen.

Scaling the tree, Conner found that it wasn't too steep. Wally could crawl out without too much trouble. It was Robin who worried him, however. Normally, the younger boy could have scaled this with his eyes closed while walking backwards in a handstand. Now, Conner wondered if the boy would have the sense to hang onto him should Conner find it necessary to carry him across on his back.

He followed the tree as far as it went and leaned down to jerk on the vines. He smiled in satisfaction. The vines were plenty strong enough to hold them. He paused to look in both directions from his precarious perch, but could see no other alternative from here. It was going to have to do.

He made his way back to the shore; hopping lightly off of the trunk onto the soft, sandy bank. This bit of good luck gave him a surge of renewed energy. Eagerly, he took off for their camp at a run. He thought the sunrise might be on them by the time he collected the others and returned. The going would be slower as they entered the jungle proper, but at least they would be on the right side of the river as that jaborandi plant they were searching for.

* * *

 **REACTIONS? This had one of my favorite scenes in it . . . Can you guess which it is?**

 **A/N:**

 **The delirium is getting a little worse here . . . The hallucinations are starting to kick in.**

 **New symptom: Rapid and LOUD heartbeat!**

 **YES, that is a real thing with this type of poisoning. You can hear the victim's heartbeat up to several feet away. This is astounding to me because I need to use a stethoscope to listen to my patients' heartbeats. I've had a pounding heartbeat before (feels weird), but you couldn't hear it standing next to me! The very idea of this completely freaks me out!**


	4. Chapter 4

**WARNING: Disturbing Scenes . . .**

* * *

Robin sat up, gasping for air; clawing at his throat. His cape was choking him; his tunic was too tight. His fingers scrabbled and fumbled to release the fasteners. His mouth was too dry and he couldn't swallow; his throat burned. He wanted to cry, but his tears had dried up and his eyes felt scratchy and irritated.

He was burning up from the inside out . . .

"Robin! What's wrong! What do you need?" KF was there, helping him remove his cape.

"Wa-Wally," Robin wheezed. "I need . . . wa-water. I . . . can't . . ." he panted, heavily. "I can't . . . swa-llow. Can't . . . bre-athe!"

* * *

Wally's eyes grew huge! "What do you mean you can't breathe? It's only been, like, ten hours! You should be good for another fifteen!"

"Wa . . . ter," Robin grasped at his friend. "Need . . . wa-ter! . . . _Please_!"

"Okay! Okay, Rob, don't worry! I'm going to help you, all right?" Wally gently, but firmly, pushed Robin back against the tree roots. Touching the boy, Wally noticed immediately the amount of heat coming off of him. Surprise had him feeling the younger boy's forehead. "Oh, man! You're burning up!"

Robin's face was flushed red; his skin felt actually dry and hot to the touch. In the firelight, Wally could see that Rob's lips were chapped as well.

He glanced back at the river in frustration. So much water was right there, but useless to them. Without Robin's purification tablets or something to boil it in, the water was too dangerous to drink. Last thing Robin needed was a bacterial or parasitic infection on top of the poison.

The irony, however, lay in the fact that they were trapped in the Amazonian rainforest, but at the moment of their greatest need, it was not raining. The last rain had stopped almost an hour ago.

Robin twisted in his discomfort and panic. "Help me . . ." he croaked. "Oh, God . . . I can't . . . stand this!"

Wally looked around him. They were on a rocky beach twenty feet from the river. There was nothing around them capable of holding water. He would need to look for rainwater still caught on leaves, but to do that, he would need to leave Robin here. The stars were out, but they didn't provide enough light to see by once he moved back under the canopy. He had no idea what threats lay in the darkness beyond that of their low burning fire.

Robin was working himself into hysteria when he suddenly shoved his own wrist into his mouth and bit down hard enough to break the skin. He began to suck at the wound greedily as he rocked back and forth.

"Rob, NO!" Wally yanked the boy's wrist away; staring in horror as blood ran down to his elbow and dripped onto the leaves.

This was so not good! Open wounds in the jungle were ripe for infection; the fresh blood, a lure for predators!

Robin tried to push Wally away, but when that didn't work, Robin tried to bite his other arm. Wally wrestled the smaller boy to the ground and straddled him. He was aware that if Robin was in his right mind, that he would never have been able to gain the advantage over him so easily. He tore off a strip off of the bottom of Robin's cape and wrapped the bleeding wrist tightly.

"Help . . . Please," Rob begged piteously; his words slurring slightly. "I need . . . Please . . . I need! I . . . I can't . . . do . . . this!"

The boy was completely out of it now. He twisted and moaned; struggling against his friend in his desperation and delirium.

 _Oh God_! Wally grasped his friend's face in his hands and leaned down. "Robin, stop! Rob! . . . Rob!" It was no use. It couldn't be helped. " _ **Dick**! Dick_ , _Listen to me_! You have to listen to me!"

"I need . . . Wa . . . ter . . . I need . . . Please!" Robin bucked in an effort to get free, but Wally used his greater weight to keep the boy pinned. "I'm going . . . to . . . to die!"

"I'm going to get you water," Wally yelled into his face. "But you have to calm down. You're not going to die! **_I won't let you die_!** I _swear_ to you, I'm going to get you out of this!"

Robin froze; staring at him. Wally held his breath. Had he gotten through to him? Did he understand?

Suddenly, Robin jerked his head up and licked Wally's face.

"What the . . .?" Startled, Wally jerked back. He lifted one hand to his face, and realized that he was crying. _That's_ why Rob licked him? To get to his **_tears_**!

 _Oh God_! _How bad did your thirst have to become to get so desperate that you would bite your wrist and drink your own blood . . . O-Or lick the tears off of your best friend's face_?!

Wally moved to wipe off his face, but realized his face was dry, but for the fresh tears that spilled from his eyes. Robin wasn't producing saliva? He wasn't sweating or crying either . . . _Hell, when was the last time he had gone to the bathroom_? Wally felt a jolt of fear. _Were Rob's kidneys shutting down_?

Wally struggled again to remember what he could about belladonna poisoning. It wasn't much. Rob knew more, but he wasn't capable of talking sense any longer.

"No, I think it's respiratory or maybe circulatory failure that we have to worry about," Wally said, more to himself than Robin, who was attempting to bite himself again. _But without water, how soon would that come_?

Wally ripped another piece of the cape and wrapped up Robin's uninjured wrist as a means to protect it. He had noticed the younger boy's lack of fine motor control, so Wally tied a complicated knot and tightened it. Although it wouldn't cut off the boy's circulation, the knots would be nearly impossible for Robin to untie without regaining some of his dexterity.

"Robin . . . _Dick_ ," Wally snapped. "I'm going to get you some water. I need to be able to trust you not to hurt yourself while I'm gone. Can I trust you?"

Robin panted; his chest heaving. Wally could actually feel the boy's heart pounding from where he still straddled his chest. He could still _hear_ it. It was all Wally could do not to freak the hell out right now, but there was no one else left to take control of the situation. Robin couldn't afford his breakdown, so Wally ruthlessly shoved all of his fear and panic into a tiny compartment in the back of his mind. Later . . . When they were all safe and Robin was recovering, _then_ Wally would lock himself in a room and allow himself to lose it.

"You have to wait here, okay?" he eased himself off of Robin and kneeled next to him; ready to stop him if the younger boy tried something crazy again.

"Wa-water . . ."

Wally winced. Rob sounded like he had been gargling sand.

"I'm going to get you some water," he promised. "But you have to _stay here_! _Don't move_! I'll be right back, I swear it. I'll bring you something to drink, but you can't move from this spot!"

When Robin just sat there, panting, Wally took that to mean that he agreed. He was half tempted to take Rob's mask off so that he could see his eyes. He imagined that the blue color would have been replaced by black from the dilation, but maybe he would be able to tell if there was still someone at home in there or not.

Wally eased out from around the roots and stood up. He looked in the direction that Conner had disappeared almost an hour ago. He wished Superboy would hurry up and return. He didn't like leaving Rob alone like this, but a quick glance behind him told Wally that water had become a major priority. Maybe it was the light from the fire, but his friend was looking almost gaunt, like there was no moisture left within him.

He wouldn't go far, he promised himself. Just a few feet into the trees to see if he could locate any standing water caught in the foliage that Wally could bring back with his friend. Wally could hear a rumble in the distance; the promise of another coming rain, but above the stars still winked at him. It could be as long as another hour before the rain got here. He didn't think Rob could wait that long; not without going mad in the process.

Picking up his spear, Wally reached for a small branch that was burning on one end. It didn't let off much light, not being a proper torch, but it was better than nothing. He limped into the trees in search of clean rainwater.

* * *

Wally was talking to him. Robin could hear the words, but he was scared. He felt like he was cooking inside of his own body. He watched as the slightly blurry, double images of his friend left. Wally promised to bring him water. He promised . . .

Robin wanted to believe him. He really did . . . But he felt like he was dying! It hurt to breathe. Everything inside of him felt like it was shriveling up and turning to dust.

The fire was too hot. He tugged at his tunic again, but his fingers were too clumsy to work the fastenings. He wished Bruce was here . . . Bruce would save him. Bruce would help.

"Bruce . . . I need . . . I need . . . you," he whispered even though, in his feverish mind, Robin knew that Bruce wasn't anywhere nearby.

Lights . . .

Robin squinted. Tiny lights were bobbing up and down in the darkness beyond. Like little fireflies . . . Or fairies. He had seen fairies earlier, he thought. They had been dancing in the rays of light that penetrated the shadows beneath the canopy. Were they back?

The thought distracted him momentarily from the intensity of his thirst. The fairies lived here in the forest . . . Maybe . . . maybe _they_ would know where to find water. Spurred by that thought, Robin used the mammoth roots to climb to his feet. He swayed and then steadied himself.

One foot in front of the other . . .

As he passed the burning log, he felt the cool humidity of the rainforest caress his face. It wasn't enough. The mist didn't penetrate his skin; didn't quench his parched tongue. He stumbled when he stepped onto the rocks, and fell. Pain shot through his knee as it struck one of the many stones that peppered the beach. He attempted to climb back to his feet, but the ground felt like it was moving.

The lights were still there; dipping and bobbing. He could hear dripping noises. The sound of water moving reached his ears, but it was hard to hear over the pounding of his own heart.

"Help . . ." Robin held out a hand to the fairy lights. "Please . . . help me."

One of the lights moved closer; dipped near his face. He thought he saw a tiny person in the glowing, blinking light. It smiled at him and waved.

"Wa . . ." he coughed and grimaced. It felt like his throat was being ripped apart. "Wa-ter!"

"Come here," the tiny person called to him. "Come here and drink."

It floated back to its friends. Other voices began calling to him; all of them beckoning him to "come and drink".

"I need . . . help," he tried to say. His tongue felt like it was thick and sticking to the roof of his mouth.

One of the lights floated over his head. When Robin looked up, a tiny drop of water fell onto his cheek.

 _Oh_! The fairy was bringing him water! Another drop landed beside of his nose and ran down to the corner of his lips. His tongue darted out; greedy for the relief it promised, but it wasn't nearly enough. The fairies couldn't bring him enough to ease him.

"Come and drink . . ." The musical sound enticed him to follow.

He crawled forward and the sound of moving water grew louder.

"Thank you," he whispered, as he struggled over the sharp, slippery rocks. "I'm . . . coming."

So close . . . He was so close.

Movement out of the darkness caught his eye, and Robin turned his head. A dark shape was emerging from the shadows and edging toward him. Perhaps he should have been disturbed, but it had been many years since Robin had been afraid of the dark and the things in it. To him, the darkness meant safety and comfort. To Robin, the shadowy creature that crept toward him meant . . .

" _Batman_?"

Relief flooded him. Batman would save him! Batman _always_ saved him . . .

* * *

It moved quietly as it hunted; the pads of its paws absorbing sound as it made its way through the forest. Its territory was beyond the river, in the jungle that it preferred. Curiosity had coaxed it to ford the river on back of a broken tree as it spotted monkeys scampering on the ground in the forest on the other side.

That had been two days ago. The monkeys had proven to be elusive and the river had since washed away its means to return to its normal habitat. In other rivers and streams the cat would simply swim it, but the current in this river was swift and, after several close calls with the local crocodiles, it traveled south seeking safer passage.

Now it was hungry and becoming a little bit desperate, so when it heard the unusual sounds of the upright ahead, it went to investigate.

The upright often had food that it could sometimes steal. And sometimes a smaller one would wander away the others and make for a tasty meal that could last a few days. It slowed as it neared the beach where the sound originated.

Uprights often had sharp sticks that could hurt. It would do well to be wary despite the painful churning in its belly.

It sniffed the air; the breeze carrying information with it. An upright, but different from the others it had encountered. This one smelled sick. Hopeful, it edged through the ferns on its belly.

This upright was larger than the little ones it occasionally hunted, but not yet fully grown.

It sensed weakness. It pricked its ears, searching. Uprights were seldom alone. It sensed that there was others nearby, but none close. The pain in its belly made the risk worth it. It eased out into the open; using its camouflage and the shadows to conceal itself. It hesitated when the upright seemed to notice it. It crouched, preparing to dart after its prey should it decide to run.

It didn't.

Slowly, it moved further from the safety of the trees as it approached its prey. Pausing again, when the upright whispered one of its strange cries. After a moment it moved forward, closing the distance. It was close enough now that nothing would prevent it from achieving the kill. It ran at its frozen prey and pounced . . .

* * *

Conner rounded the bend and entered the beach where they camped. He frowned when he spotted Robin near the river's edge. What was he doing?

He quickly scanned the area for Wally? When he didn't find him, Conner grew worried. The speedster wouldn't have left Robin vulnerable like this unless something serious drew him away. Had Ivy changed her mind and come after them? Had some unknown predator attacked him and dragged his body away?

What he _did_ know was that Robin was far too close to the river's edge. Without his belt and in his current state, the younger boy would easily be swept away and drowned, or become dinner for a black caiman, the largest of the crocodile species, and native to Brazil and its South American neighbors.

He was moving to intercept the boy when he noticed the movement. Conner's eyes widened when he recognized the jaguar, and realized it was actively hunting Robin. His teammate seemed oblivious to the danger, although he had obviously seen it.

" ** _Robin_ ,** **_move_!** " Conner shouted, and broke into a run as, simultaneously, the large cat raced forward with an incredible burst of speed.

Conner's heart dropped when he realized that, with the inhibitor collar on, there was no way he would be able to reach Robin in time.

The jaguar leapt . . .

* * *

 **REACTIONS? Oh, come on . . . There has to be some reaction to this!**

 **A/N:**

 **Dilated pupils - which results in blurry and/or double vision.**

 **Fever - When you cannot sweat, you cannot control your body temperature. Even worse is this happening in the tropics.**

 **You see now how bad the dry mouth can become. No, not really . . . It can get worse.**

 **Respiratory failure is a real danger as is circulatory failure, but this comes later, after the a couple of other symptoms. If he manages to survive the jaguar attack, that is.**


	5. Chapter 5

**WARNINGS: Language, Violence, and Disturbing Imagery . . .**

* * *

He was never going to make it in time!

Conner threw himself forward, but the damned collar kept him at human speed. The jaguar pounced . . .

" **NO!** " Connor shouted.

Suddenly, there was a blur of motion and the wild cat disappeared in mid-leap. A splash sounded a few feet away and there was a furious commotion. Wally burst through the surface of the water with a gasp as the jaguar shook him off and raced back to shore; back toward Robin! The younger boy seemed to be in a stupor . . . He just sat there with his arms extended toward the cat; an odd look upon his face.

This time when the jaguar leaped, Conner was there; catching the big cat around the middle with one arm and the other wrapped firmly around its neck. The two rolled with the landing, and it was all Conner could to do to hang on; his breath was forced from his body as he tumbled across the rocks. The creature had to weigh at least a hundred and sixty pounds or more. The cat coughed and hissed; twisting and struggling wildly to get free.

He was only vaguely aware of Wally sloshing out of the river.

"Wally, get Robin out of here," he yelled over the terrifying growling and coughing noises the angry cat was making.

"Conner, you can't handle a jaguar on your own now," Wally was limping heavily in their direction.

" _ **Get Robin**_ **!** I can't hold this thing for much longer," Conner yelled.

As they continued to struggle for dominance, the jaguar's back feet came up and its claws tore at Conner's arm. He hissed in pain and his hold loosened enough for the cat to twist around. It bit down on Conner's shoulder, its three inch canines actually penetrating his skin and muscle. Conner screamed at the shocking pain.

His muscles, however, were much denser than the cat's usual prey. The meat proved impossible to tear. The jaguar shook its head, causing Conner to gasp at the astounding agony shooting up from his shoulder. He tightened his grip with his lacerated arm in hopes of getting the beast to release him.

* * *

Wally hesitated. With the inhibitor collar, Conner was no match for the jaguar, but Robin was an easy target; small enough that if the cat got free, it could kill the unresisting boy in a second. The jaguar, being the third largest of all big cats, was too large for Wally to handle on his own. His success in stopping it had been a combination of his speed and the fact that the cat had been in mid-leap when he had plowed into its side.

Grabbing Robin's arm, Wally half dragged/half carried him back to the tree; the boy having come out of his daze fighting. Wally shoved him back into the shelter of the roots, but Robin was in the midst of a powerful hallucination. He tried immediately to scramble past Wally and back out into danger.

Conner's scream awoke Wally to a real fear that the weakened clone was losing his battle with the beast. Out of time, he grabbed Robin by the shoulders and shook him hard.

"Rob! Snap out of it," Wally yelled in his face. "That jaguar will _kill_ Conner!"

Robin paused; and looked at him, confused. "What?" He asked breathlessly. "Conner?"

" _ **STAY PUT**_! _I have to help him! Do you hear me? **DON'T MOVE**_ **!** "

Wally didn't wait. He ran back out onto the beach and gasped in horror. The jaguar had latched onto Conner's shoulder and was trying to rip his arm off! Wally ran over to where he had dropped his spear earlier. Picking it up now, he raced over to the combatants. He didn't want to have to kill the beautiful animal, but neither could he allow it maul his friend.

He jabbed the beast high on its hip with his sharpened point. It growled, but seemed to have trouble releasing its prey. It coughed at Wally in warning. Wally raced to the opposite side of the cat as fast as he could manage and grabbed it scruff with both hands; yanking as he spun about. Understanding what Wally planned to do, Conner had released the animal by this time, and Wally's powerful momentum allowed him to throw the beast several yards away.

The large cat rolled to its feet and bounded off into the darkness.

Wally and Conner collapsed in a heap beside one another.

"Ohmygodareyouallright?" Wally asked in a rush.

Conner was holding his shoulder with a shaking, bloodied hand. Wally walked on his knees the two feet he needed to help put pressure on the clone's injury.

"I can't believe it," he said at normal speed. "It actually _bit_ you! You're bleeding! I didn't think you could bleed."

Conner gritted his teeth; hunching over in a bid to control his pain. "Gah! It hurts!"

Wally lifted his hand to examine the wound and stared in awe. He carefully reached up and plucked a bloody canine tooth from one of Conner's puncture wounds.

"You're not exactly all that tender, are you?" He quipped in amazement as he handed the tooth to his friend. "It broke a tooth off trying to eat you!"

"It wasn't trying to eat _me_ ," Conner growled. "It wanted to eat Robin! _Where the hell were you_? You were supposed to be watching him!"

Wally glanced back to where he had dropped the leaf full of water onto the ground when he had returned to the beach and discovered the jaguar about to attack his best friend. The water was gone now. He frowned in the direction that he had left Robin. He couldn't get mad, but he could get frustrated. Rob's urgent need for water and his delirium had prevented him from understanding and obeying Wally's order.

He remembered Robin yelling for Batman just moments ago, so he knew that the boy was continuing to have hallucinations as well. They would need to keep a closer eye out on him from now on.

"Robin was having a panic attack. He's become extremely dehydrated. The belladonna has dried up everything; his spit, his tears, his sweat . . ."

Wally grimaced in his guilt, but what else could he have done? Placed in the same situation, with Rob begging him like that, Wally knew he would do the same thing all over again . . . But maybe next time he wouldn't wander quite so far, or bother to collect so much.

He stood up warily, aware that his adrenaline would be crashing any second now and he would feel the biting pain he knew would result from his using his foot too soon. He had already started shaking because of it. But they couldn't just sit out here. Robin might have forgotten his thirst briefly in the turmoil, but it would return too soon and with a mighty vengeance, Wally was certain.

"You left him to get **_water_**?" Conner didn't try to hide his disbelief. "Wally, we're in a freaking rainforest!" Thunder rumbled, almost directly overhead now. "You just had to wait for it!"

Wally helped him to stand. "You don't understand how he was," he griped defensively, "and I didn't know when you were coming back! Conner, why do you think he was so close to the river when we found him?"

Conner shook his head. "He was thirsty," he admitted. "I understand that. I _get_ it, but he wouldn't have to worry about thirst anymore if that jaguar just had another couple of seconds."

"You don't understand it! Rob's disoriented and confused. He's delirious and experiencing hallucinations. He's no longer capable of understanding the dangers! But you need to realize that this poison has other symptoms as well! The fever and the dehydration are just as dangerous to him as any of the predators we might meet up with." Wally only managed a couple of steps before his leg gave out and Conner had to catch him.

"How bad is it?" Conner asked softly. He didn't need to clarify for Wally to understand that he was asking about his foot.

"I don't think I re-broke anything. It was just too soon for that kind of exertion." Wally allowed Conner to help support him. "It would be good enough in a few hours if I could just eat something."

"I'll see what I can do," Conner said. "Hope you're not sick of fish. It's going to be breakfast, too."

"I can deal with that," Wally said as he glanced at his teammate's shoulder. As they neared the feeble light of the fire, it allowed him to see the extent of Conner's injury. "Congratulations! You've stopped bleeding already."

"Guess Poison Ivy didn't take my super healing into account," the clone shrugged, and then winced at the movement.

"Who thinks about how well you can heal when you're supposed to be invulnerable to injuries? You do realize that Ivy is going to be so disappointed," Wally quipped lightly, even as he looked worriedly for Robin. He was surprised the boy wasn't moaning in his need for water again, but then he saw that Robin was hunched near the back of the root system at the base of the tree. His hand was in his mouth.

" ** _Shit_!** " The sucking sounds alerted him that he was too late as Wally released his hold on Conner to lunge for the boy.

"Rob, **_stop_** ," he cried, but the damage was done. Wally pulled Robin's hand free to reveal a savage bite on the heel of his palm.

Conner stared in shock as Robin licked the blood from his lips. "What the hell?"

" ** _Damn it_!** " Wally began picking apart the complicated knot around Robin's wrist. He would have to rewrap it to include the wound on his hand now. He glanced up at Conner. _"This_ was what I was trying to tell you! _This_ is why I risked going out for water," he told him. "Rob's already bitten his wrist once in his desperation for something to drink."

Robin tugged at his hand.

"Water," he croaked. His voice was no longer as hoarse as it had been and the reason for it made Wally grimace. "You said . . ." Robin panted. "You promised . . . water."

"I know, buddy," Wally soothed. "I was bringing it, but then that big cat showed up and made me spill it. I'll have to get you more."

The whine that he produced broke Wally's heart.

"I'm so sorry, Rob."

"Thirsty . . ." Robin's face crumpled, but he had no tears. "Batman . . ."

"Batman's not here right now," he murmured. "But I'm sure he's looking for you."

"Alfred . . .?" Robin wheezed. "Bruce . . . I need . . . Bruce . . ."

"Sh," Wally shushed him. "The water's coming. Can't you hear the thunder?"

"Hot . . . M'so hot!"

"I know."

"Thirsty . . ."

"It's coming, buddy. Your water's coming."

* * *

Conner rubbed a hand over his shoulder. The intensity of the pain had been astonishing, if fleeting. It continued to hurt, but it had dulled to a deep, throbbing ache that extended all the way down his arm. He clenched his fist and noticed that his strength in that hand was diminished.

He tugged aside the shirt and critiqued the wound. It had stopped bleeding, but the punctures were still visible. Thankfully, the cat's teeth didn't reach the joint. He was apparently too tough for the jaguar to handle. The lacerations on his other arm were jagged, but not nearly so deep. They hurt, but nothing like what was going on with his shoulder.

Conner shoved the big cat's canine into his pocket. A souvenir . . . He had more than earned it. He snorted at how close they had all come to 'biting' it.

Maybe Poison Ivy _hadn't_ been foolish in letting them go free. She was obviously well aware of the dangers of the rainforest when she had made that decision. He would bet that she had been counting on those dangers to finish them off.

One day on their own, without their abilities and tools, and the rainforest had nearly ended them all. They were still a long way from civilization. They still had a river to forge. They still had the jaborandi to locate. It was even more important now that they cross quickly and begin their search. The chances of all three of them making out of the jungle alive were shrinking fast.

Kid had theorized that Robin had another fifteen to eighteen hours left . . . Well, make that thirteen to sixteen hours now, but Conner wasn't so sure. Seeing Robin become so dehydrated and desperate that he would willingly drink his own blood . . . He was no longer certain that Wally's estimate was accurate. He was also having serious doubts that Robin would be able to make that river crossing without needing considerable help from him and Wally.

He squeezed his hand shut again.

Nope, he thought angrily, not nearly as strong as it was before. It would just have to be strong enough.

The first sounds of rain fell on the leaves covering their shelter. Robin's need for water remained, so Conner crawled out from under the branches he had piled atop the roots; moving around the tree to find a flat leaf capable of holding enough water for their needs. Wally, too, would be needing to drink soon, and unsure what other limits the collar would place on him, Conner would be careful to drink his fill as well.

* * *

It took eight trips to ease Robin's pain. Conner wished they had some kind of container in which to carry water with them. It rained often, but not often enough to keep the boy supplied. Unless they could reverse the poison, Robin could drink until he exploded, but this thirst would persist.

After he had drank a bit, Robin seemed more cognizant of his surroundings. His fever continued to rage unabated, however. Had he not broken his skin, they might have been able to cool him down with dip in the river. Unfortunately, there would be no such relief; not without risking infection.

As the sky lightened, Robin dropped off into an uneasy doze. Conner helped Wally out to the river's side. For all that he was hungry and tired, the fifteen year old was still outrageously fast. Wally racked up twelve fish in no time with the spear. He scaled, and then helped to cook them.

Conner had eaten two. Wally had downed nine, but they had had to coax Robin to eat even one. It had been disturbing for Conner to watch the boy as he picked up an invisible cup and drank from it. For all that it was only part of his feverish brain's imagination, Robin seemed to relish it; enough so, in fact, for him to hand the make-believe cup to Conner to refill for him.

Although he had felt ridiculous doing it, Wally had insisted that they humor their afflicted teammate with his more harmless hallucinations. Neither he nor Wally spoke about the various people that Robin conversed with throughout the rest of the night. People like Bruce or Alfred or Leslie . . . But the conversations were heartbreaking as Robin begged them to let him go home or for just a little more water to drink.

An hour later, Wally's foot had improved enough that he could walked for fifteen minute intervals without assistance. That was a good thing since they had discovered that Robin's disorientation would have him stopping or wandering off from them if they weren't paying attention. The boy's irritation with them or his surroundings would come and go, Conner guessed, with the ebb and flow of his discomfort. His double vision made Robin's balance precarious, however, and Conner ended up walking most of the distance back to the leaning tree holding his hand and leading him like a child.

* * *

"This is it?" Wally looked at the leaning tree and its vines dubiously.

"What? You don't think you can do it?" Conner asked him.

"I can do it," Wally assured him, but it didn't come out very reassuring.

"I can help you," Conner offered.

Wally waved it off. "You're going to have your hands full enough as it is," he said. "You don't need to worry about me, too."

Conner had to stop Robin from drinking the river for the umpteenth time in the past hour. The boy responded predictably with anger and aggression until it took both of his teammates' concerted efforts to drag him away.

"It's going to rain again soon, Rob," Wally promised. "You can drink when it rains. Remember? The water from the sky is good; the water from the ground is yucky."

Robin suddenly shot him a disgusted look. "Being thirsty doesn't make me an imbecile, Wally. Quit talking to me like I'm a four year old," he snapped at him in a brief moment of perfect clarity.

"Okay, okay! Sorry," Wally hunched his shoulders at the reprimand "Jeez."

Conner's lips twitched at the speedster's need to appease the younger boy. It was more than likely that in another ten minutes they would again be forced to talk to him like he was a four year old.

"Are we ready to do this thing?" Conner interrupted before Robin could get angrier. It was the height of irony that Conner got to play peacekeeper, but Robin seemed to get upset with Wally far more often than the boy did with him.

Wally sighed and looked at the tree. "Let's get it over with. Do you want me to take up the rear?"

"No," he said. "You go in front. I want to keep Robin in between us, and in front of me."

Robin squinted at the tree and laughed suddenly. "You're worried about _this_? This is nothing! I learned to walk a tightrope when I was seven."

Wally ignored the clue, but Conner was fascinated.

"Who taught you to walk a tightrope?" His curiosity over the comment got the better of him.

"Conner," Wally warned him, but the question was already out there.

Robin didn't seem to notice. "My dad . . . But the Amazing Paulo Santos, a famous tightrope walker in Europe, taught _him_ how to walk it when he was twelve."

"Robin was worried about accidentally revealing his secrets," Wally chided softly. "I don't think it's fair to ask him personal questions when he's obviously not capable of deciding whether or not he should share the answers."

Conner acknowledged his mistake with a grunt. He hadn't meant to ask Robin about his past, but the question was out before he could stop himself. But, now that it was answered, it made perfect sense that someone with Robin's acrobatic talents would have learned something like tightrope walking. Conner wondered how Robin's dad had the opportunity to learn something like that. Maybe the man had joined a circus when he was young? Lesson learned, Conner kept his thoughts to himself this time.

"Okay, then," Wally muttered as he stepped onto the tree's trunk. "I'm willing to bet the Amazing Santos never had to scale a tree over croc-infested water with a broken foot . . . Here goes nothing!"

* * *

 **REACTIONS? How was that cliffhanger?**

 **A/N:**

 **I should have mentioned this in the last chapter - that is where it first came up, but oh well, I needed something to write in my author's notes here.**

 **Belladonna poisoning symptoms begin to show between 6 - 12 hours, BUT you can DIE by 12 hours as well. I needed this to last a little longer. 24 -26 hours is what I use here in the story, but you CAN, and likely WILL, succumb to this poison much, much earlier than that.**

 **I will always tell you when I change up medical information for the sake of the story. I do not want you ignorant or worse - misinformed. (Not that I expect any of you to go out and make a belladonna salad or something dumb like that.)**

 **Honestly, that guide book is fascinating reading . . . It gives you tons of information, symptoms, treatments, etc. etc. and it covers everything from household poisons, to poisonous insects, animals, fish, medical poisons, poisonous fungi (mushrooms are scary - and icky. I don't eat fungus.), classic poisons like arsenic, strychnine, and cyanide to even making up your own poison. It has several appendixes that lists poisons by symptoms, by toxicity, by the time it takes to work. It gives case studies of actual murder cases and fictional cases from books. I've read it through cover to cover at least 4 times . . . Just for fun!**

 ****If any of you are interested in getting the book for yourself (I've been asked for the information several times already), here it is: It is called "Deadly Doses: A Writer's Guide to Poisons" and is written by Serita Deborah Stevens with Anne Klarner. It is part of The Howdunit Series. The ISBN # for the book is: 0-89879-371-8.****

 **Happy Reading! Better Writing!**


	6. Chapter 6

**WARNING: Some Language**

* * *

"You just **_had_** to say 'croc-infested', didn't you?" Conner groused.

Wally was sitting on a branch contemplating the distance remaining between the end of the tree and the relative safety of the opposite shoreline. It wasn't a beach, but a rather steep embankment. He wasn't entirely confident that the embankment would act as a deterrent to the half a dozen black caiman crocodiles that swam beneath them, but he was ever hopeful.

They certainly weren't going to be going back the way they came. A quick glance confirmed that another huge black crocodile was waiting for them on the beach. It met Wally's eye and hissed.

"Are you really going to blame me for this?"

Conner kept a firm grip on Robin's arm from where they sat just behind Wally's perch. The Boy Wonder had made it the length of the tree with only one misstep. Conner's death-grip on his arm and waist had been the only thing preventing his fall into the river below.

At the moment, Rob was quiet, but that wasn't necessarily good news as they discovered that it was indicative that his delirium might be returning. He was out of it more than half of the time now. Both he and Conner were worried. Conner felt confident that he could traverse the vines safely while carrying Robin on his back, but Robin would have to be willing to hold on. Unfortunately, there was no guarantee that he would.

" _Yes_ ," he snapped; glancing over at the speedster. "There weren't any crocodiles here last night when I found this place." Conner didn't really blame his friend, but he was feeling 'snarky' as a result of his frustration.

"That is so not fair," Wally grumbled. "This is the Amazon jungle, you know. This is their home. It's not like they showed up out of the blue just for me."

"I'm pretty sure I read somewhere that crocodiles like redheaded treats best," Conner stated. "Maybe if we toss you in, they'll let Robin and I go."

Wally sent him a glare although there wasn't any heat to it. He realized that the clone was just trying to lighten the mood with a little teasing. Frankly, Wally was amazed at the change in his teammate. This was an improvement.

"You wouldn't dare! You need me! Rob would never forgive you later."

"Don't be an idiot! Shut up and get going," Conner told him. His banter dried up, however, as he eyed Robin warily. "I'm not sure how much longer Robin's going to be willing to work with me."

Wally blew out a breath. "Yeah. Okay, roger that."

He could do this fast, but fast wasn't insurance that he wouldn't lose his grip and fall. He could just fall – fast. He leaned out and gripped the vine. It was fat. His hands barely reached all the way around it. It made him nervous because it felt like his grip was loose.

Slowly, he eased his weight from the tree to the vine. When it held, Wally found he could breathe again. He started forward, hand-over-hand toward the shore. The black caiman crocodiles snapped and circled around below him. He remembered reading that these crocs were the largest of their kind in the world, and Wally believed it. The smallest of them looked to be at least sixteen feet in length.

No sense in just dangling, so Wally used a little speed and allowed his momentum to swing him safely over the lip of the embankment where he crashed through the heavy foliage like a bowling ball. Fearing snakes and poisonous insects, Wally jumped to his feet immediately.

"Okay, I'm down," he called. "Your turn."

* * *

Wally watched nervously as Conner talked to Robin. He had to grip the younger boy's face in his hand to keep his attention and talk to him like he was a child – the very thing Rob had complained to Wally about earlier. But there wasn't a choice; Rob seemed to be slipping back into his delirium.

He and Conner had discussed Wally attempting to run Robin across, but his foot was tricky at the moment. It ached for the most part, but occasionally he would get a shooting pain that would travel up the length of his leg and would drop him on the spot. Conner refused to chance that happening while Wally ran at top speed with Robin in tow. But the speedster didn't know how this was any better.

He had to swallow his heart as Conner coaxed the younger boy to wrap his arms around his neck and hang on.

If Robin let go, and Conner couldn't catch him, then it would be up to Wally to get there before the boy became those crocodiles' breakfast. If his foot gave out then, they were both croc bait. Nothing Superboy could do would be able to save them – not with that collar activated.

Conner helped Rob wrap his feet around his waist, then double-checked his hold around his neck before sliding the both of them off of the edge of the branch.

The black caiman on the opposite shore splashed into the water to join its buddies. There were so many of them and they were so worked up, it looked as though the river was boiling.

"Hang on, Rob," Wally whispered. He wanted to call out his encouragement, but it was just as likely that he would distract his friend into letting go, so Wally whispered. "Please, hang on."

* * *

Conner dangled from the vine. His hands were larger than Wally's, so his grip on it was surer, but what good would that do him if Robin let go? He didn't waste any time, but began making his way to the opposite shore as quickly as he could without jarring his precious cargo.

If Robin fell, Conner already decided that so would he. Hopefully, Wally would be able to retrieve Robin while Conner kept the crocs busy. With the collar on, though, it would be suicide as the jaguar had already proven that his body was weakened enough that he could be bitten. It was just another thing to remind him that he wasn't worthy of the 'S' he wore. But he wasn't worried about making it out himself.

No, he was determined. If all three of them couldn't walk out of here together, then Conner refused to walk out of here alone.

"You're doing great," he encouraged softly as he slid one hand forward and then slid the other hand up to meet it. "Don't let go, whatever you do. Just hang on to me."

"Thirsty . . ." Robin whined in his ear.

How many times had the boy complained of this? Too many to count. But the rumbles of thunder had been promising rain for the past hour and had yet to produce a single drop.

"I know," Conner grunted.

His shoulder was killing him. Hours later, and the marks were _still_ there. He couldn't imagine having to do this with Kid Flash while in his current condition. Robin weighed a good forty pounds less that the Kid, and Conner was struggling. He couldn't wait to get this damned collar off, and if he never saw another one, it would still be too soon!

"Water . . ."

"Don't look down there!" Conner barked the reminder. "That's bad water. It will hurt you."

"I need . . . Bat . . . man," Robin panted in his ear.

"Batman's not here, but don't worry. He's coming," Conner assured him absentmindedly. One hand, and then the other. He looked ahead. Another fifteen feet maybe and then he might be able to swing Robin over to Kid if he had to.

"C-Can't . . . breathe," Robin panted.

"Oh, shit!" Conner struggled not to panic. "Oh, shit, don't say that."

Something splattered on his cheek.

Rain.

"Ah, damn it! Not _now_!" The last thing Conner needed right now was trying to hang on to a rain-slicked vine.

"Uh, Conner? You better pick it up," Wally called out. "The rain is coming!"

"I know, I know," he snapped. "Just shut up! I'm working on it!"

One hand, and then the other; one hand, and then the other. The rain began to fall harder. Soon it would be another torrential downpour. Ten feet to go.

"Water . . . from . . . the sky," Robin gasped in relief. He leaned his head back to catch the falling droplets in his mouth; _anything,_ Conner was sure, to ease his suffering.

" _Robin_! _Don't lean back_!" Conner yelped. The boy's hands shifted; his hold loosening. Eight feet . . .

He tried to increase his pace. One hand, then the other; one hand, then the other; one hand, and the other slipped! Conner swung as he dangled from his good arm. The rain was coming down in buckets; beating on them! He could barely see Wally standing just six feet away in his bright yellow and red. He grunted with the effort to pull himself and Robin's weight up with one hand enough for him to grab the vine. And then suddenly the extra weight was gone!

" ** _NO_**!" Conner dropped his free hand again as he arched back; reaching . . .

He caught Robin's wrist.

Conner thanked God for the bandages that Wally had wrapped Robin's hands and wrists in, otherwise the younger boy would have slipped free of his grip. The cloth gave Conner some small bit of purchase.

The crocodiles below were worked up into a frenzy; leaping upward in a bid to catch Robin's dangling feet. Their snapping jaws making loud clacking noises.

"Hang on," Wally was yelling.

Conner could barely hear him of the cacophony of the rain and the roiling, splashing, growling of the crocs. He stared down at Robin who looked, as best he could tell, unconscious.

"Robin! Robin, grab hold of me," Conner yelled down to him.

The damned mask! Conner couldn't tell if Robin was actually unconscious or lost in his delirium . . . _Or_ , if the poison had moved onto whatever was the next step in its progression. Coma? He gulped. Death?

 _No_! No, he refused to believe that. Kid Flash had estimated Robin had another ten hours before he succumbed to the belladonna poison. Conner clung to that number as he did to the vine above him and to the boy below him.

" _ **ROBIN!** **ANSWER ME**_ ," Conner roared. " _Damn it_!"

Robin didn't answer . . . But there was a twitch in his face. It was fleeting, and Conner couldn't be certain that he really saw it, but he had to believe it had happened.

"Conner," Wally called to him. "I want you to count to three and then drop him!"

"What?! Are you _crazy_? I'm not going to drop him," he yelled back at Wally.

"I'll be there to catch him," the speedster promised.

"No! No, you won't because I'm _not_ going to drop him," Conner snarled.

Even with Wally's speed, even had his foot been perfect, what he was planning was impossible! It was crazier than anything Conner might come up with in his worst moments! The crocs would get them both . . . And then Conner would be alone.

"You _have_ to! You can't just hang there forever! You'll drop him eventually!"

Conner scowled. "I'm **_not_** going to drop him," he growled through gritted teeth. "I'm going to throw him over to you, Wally! You have to catch him!" On the bank, where it was safe.

"You can't! With the inhibitor collar, it's too far!"

"And _your_ way is better?"

Wally mimed a zigzagging motion with his hand. "I'll run between them," he said. "It'll work!"

"No, it won't, but _this_ will! Stop worrying. I'll make it," Conner snapped at him.

Conner carefully angled his body, using muscles he'd never noticed before as he lifted his feet up to the vine. He clamped his legs around it and finally let go. His hand was cramped from holding the vine for so long. He reached down and grabbed Robin's wrist, and with both hands began to swing him.

 _This was nuts_! They always joked that Robin could do this kind of stuff in his sleep; well, now was his chance and he was going to blow it! Conner swung the boy in a wider arc; using his weight like a pendulum to increase his momentum. At the highest point of his swing, Conner took a breath and released him; adding what little strength that remained in him into the throw and praying it was enough.

* * *

"Please, please, please," the prayer, more like a mantra, whispered through Wally's lips.

He didn't know for sure what it was he was asking for exactly. That they find the jaborandi plant, that Robin would be okay, that they all make it out of the jungle alive, but right at this moment Kid just wanted Conner to have the strength to get Robin across the distance.

Wally stood at the precipice of the embankment. Three of the black caiman were fighting each other just below his feet in an effort to reach him, but he was thankfully too high and the ground was too steep for them.

Rob was limp when Conner heaved him the distance with a loud roar. In horror, Wally realized that Robin was going to fall just short of the embankment, and then it was that ti . . .me . . . slo . . .ow . . .ed . . . do . . .ow . . . n . . .

Wally grabbed a couple of vines and wrapped them around his chest and leaned out over the river with both hands extended. He caught Robin's forearm and dragged him back. One of the crocodiles looked frozen where it had leapt up with its mouth open, and Rob's boot snagged on a tooth. Wally threw his body weight backward, yanking the boy free long before the croc could snap his mouth shut.

Time returned to normal with the movement as the vines broke under the stress and they went tumbling backward into the ferns; Wally's arms curled protectively around his best friend's body, until he smacked up against a tree.

When enough oxygen had returned to his lungs, Wally groaned. He was carefully untangling himself from Robin when Conner landed on the edge of the embankment with a grunt.

"Are you two all right?" he asked, kneeling down to help.

Wally sat up gingerly. "Yeah," he wheezed. "But Conner?"

The other boy paused to meet his eyes. "Yeah?"

"Let's not _ever_ do that again, okay?"

Conner's lips twitched, and then spread into grin. When he started snickering, Wally joined in with relieved laughter as the shock and adrenaline began to wear off.

"Yeah, yeah," Conner agreed, chuckling. "Never again!" All humor faded, however, when Conner reached for Robin. "Give him to me," he said.

Conner propped Robin against his chest. The boy was limp and panting, but alive. His face was flushed a brighter red that it had been previously, meaning his fever was spiking again. How much longer could he take this before his brain cooked inside his skull?

Wally kneeled in front of them. His eyes met the clone's.

"I really need to see what's going on behind his mask," he told him. "I- I already know his secret identity, but . . ." His voice faded.

"I know. We all guessed that you knew him outside of the team," Conner admitted.

"You did?" He had had no idea.

"You're not _that_ great at keeping secrets," Conner told him. "It was kind of obvious."

Wally frowned at that. "Oh, okay. Well, I'm going to need to take his mask off."

Conner nodded. "I won't look, if that helps."

Wally was quiet a minute. "I don't think you have to do that. I know Rob trusts you and I do, too."

Conner's lips edged up into a smile. "Thanks."

"Right," Wally peeled the edges of the mask off.

Robin's hands jerked up, suddenly, catching Wally's wrists. They froze, thinking that the boy was protesting, but it was merely a subconscious gesture on his part; a need so ingrained by his training that even burning with fever and delirious, Robin's body reacted without conscious thought.

Wally pulled the mask away. Rob's eyes were open, but the amazing blue was merely a ring of color around the widely-dilated pupils. Robin couldn't see anything like this! He squinted painfully and turned his head away from the sunlight streaming through the palms overhead.

"Shit," Wally whispered. Speaking louder, he tried to connect to Robin. "Rob! Robin! Talk to me, bro . . . Let me know you're still with us!"

"He feels hotter," Conner whispered, worriedly. "His heart is pounding and it's still really loud. You can hear it, too, right?"

He gulped. "Yeah, I can hear it, too."

After so many hours, he had kind of stopped hearing it, but, yeah, it was still loud . . . and fast. How long could Rob go like this before the stress killed him? Did he still have ten hours, or was it more like nine now?

There was a rustle in the plants around them, and Wally's head jerked up. He met Conner's eyes. If they ran into another jaguar, they were toast! All of the foliage hid rocks and fallen branches and uneven ground. Kid Flash was at a severe disadvantage here. Superboy wasn't so super anymore, however.

A twig snapped to their right, and more rustling sounded to their left.

Wally laid one hand on Conner's shoulder, and shoved Robin's mask at him with the other.

"Protect him," he whispered, and stood up to face whatever new threat the jungle was about to throw at them; picking up a downed branch as he did so.

* * *

Conner shoved the mask in his pocket and lifted Robin into his arms as he also stood. The tree to his right looked climbable. He could toss Robin over his shoulder and get them off of the ground if one of the crocodiles had found its way to them.

He watched Wally raise the branch like a baseball bat while Conner tensed to move.

"Come on out," Kid called out.

It was a little ridiculous. Whatever was hunting them wouldn't understand him, nor could it answer him. But the jungle around them seemed to respond to his challenge and came alive.

Brown men with hand-fashioned spears and bows appeared as if out of nowhere, surrounding them; indigenous natives obviously of one of the local tribes in the area.

Wally dropped his arms, but held the branch at his side loosely. He glanced back at Conner with a dumbstruck look on his face.

"Oh, shit," he muttered, disgusted.

Conner shifted Robin in his arms, curling the sick boy into his chest in an unconsciously protective gesture.

"You're right," he agreed. He was almost afraid to ask what else could go wrong. As he took in the new situation Conner figured that all they were missing was the fan.

* * *

 **REACTIONS?**

 **Ever hear of Murphy's Law? "Whatever can go wrong; will." That's it in a nutshell . . . It is my plot philosophy and writing style! You love it, though, don't you? You MUST! You keep coming back for more . . . :D**

 **A/N:**

 **Black caiman crocodiles are the largest of their species in the world, ranging in size from 12 - 20 ft. in length.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Okay, it has been brought to my attention that Superboy is multilingual and knows EVERY LANGUAGE on earth. Come on, Cadmus, really? Even those obscure Brazilian indigenous tribes, of which there are some 250 - many of which have their one unique language, many of which have never even had contact with the outside world - ever? Yeah, I don't think so . . . However, for the sake of THIS story, let's just pretend that Cadmus missed this particular tribe. ;D Thanks for the info, btw, random guest. It will help in future stories!**

 **WARNING: Some Language and Disturbing Scenes . . .**

* * *

They were called the Ashinawa, a tribe indigenous to this area of the Brazilian rainforest for the last thousand years. There were too many for Wally and Conner to try to fight, especially with Robin so ill. When the hunters indicated that the boys were to follow them, they went peacefully.

The men were painted and their black hair was long and straight. Some wore braids, but only a couple had beads and feathers decorating them. They wore loin cloths or woven skirts of some kind grass. All were barefoot.

Wally got the idea that they were fascinated by his costume, or what was left of it. He thought it was its bright yellow and red color that attracted them. A couple of the men watched Conner, and stared worriedly at the boy lying limp in his arms.

As they neared their village, an argument broke out. A couple of the hunters waved their hand in their directions and spoke angrily. The older men shook their heads and tried to placate the younger, more volatile of them with gentle gestures. One large man stormed toward Conner. The clone chose to back up hastily rather than challenge the man with Robin in the middle. But then the hunter caught up to him and grabbed Robin by the hair, holding the semi-conscious boy's head up for everyone to see.

Conner bellowed in anger; kicking the big man behind the knee and dropping him like a stone. A dozen arrow and spearheads were pointing in his direction the next second. Conner growled low and hunched over Robin, turning so as to keep his body between the boy and as many of the weapons as he could.

Wally suppressed the urge to use his speed, hoping to diffuse the situation instead. He had been thinking on the hike in that if anyone could find the jaborandi plant, that these people could. He stepped between Conner and the more volatile members of the group with his hands up in surrender.

"Easy. Let's everybody be calm now," he soothed. "I'm sure we can work this out without anyone doing an impression of a pincushion. Am I right?"

The big guy was scrambling to his feet. He favored the leg that Conner had kicked, but it seemed like it was important to him to not show weakness . . . Or, apparently, fear. He moved purposely past Wally to reach for Robin again. This time, Wally intercepted him, grabbing his wrist before he could touch the boy.

Wally narrowed his eyes and shook his head slowly. "No," he said firmly.

The large hunter stared back; taking Wally's stance as a challenge. Wally stepped forward into him despite coming up only to the man's chest.

" **No!** " He repeated the word in a yell, but didn't make any threatening gestures.

Conner bared his teeth.

The older man eased between them, using many of the same non-threatening gestures that Wally had just moments ago. He turned to the large hunter; pushing him back. He looked at Wally and pointed to Robin. The words he used were nothing but gibberish. Wally had no idea what he was saying, but he thought he understood the body language.

"I think they believe that Rob is sick," He told Conner. "I think they're worried that if they bring him into their village that their families will catch his illness."

Conner frowned. "But Robin's not sick. He's been poisoned!"

"I know, but how to get that across to them so that they understand?" Wally asked him.

Turning back to the older man, Wally mimed being sick like with a cold. He faked coughing and sneezing, and then pointed at Robin; shaking his head vigorously.

"You look like an idiot," Conner commented dryly.

"Shut up. I think it's working," Wally snapped back, excitedly.

The older hunter stared at Robin, and looked back at Wally.

Wally pretended to eat something, and then grasped his throat dramatically with one hand and draped the other over his forehead. He then pointed at Robin and nodded.

"He didn't eat anything," Conner rolled his eyes and remarked. "Ivy shot him with a poisoned dart."

Wally shot him a look. " _I_ know that and _you_ know that, but I didn't want to make it to look like we might be the bad guys. This will still get it across that Robin is poisoned and not sick."

"Yeah, well, how about you mime to that the big guy there that he best keep his hands to himself? If he tries to touch Robin again, his friends will have to carry _his_ ass back to the village."

"I'm kind of hoping this old guy will do that for us," Wally said.

The older man started talking quickly to the others and after a moment, he looked back at Wally, and pointed to Robin.

"I don't think he understands you," Conner said, concerned.

"No, I think he did. He wants to see Robin for himself," Wally told him. He held up a hand and nodded; stepping back to allow the elder man to see the boy.

"Wally?" Conner growled in warning.

"Take it easy, Conner. I think he just wants to judge for himself. I won't let him hurt Rob," Wally assured his friend.

The older man stared into Robin's unmasked face. He took in the dilated eyes; the dry, reddened skin; the parched, chapped lips. He tilted his head as if listening to the boy's quickened, labored breathing and then pointed to Robin's chest. He mimed a beating heart on his own body and then pointed to his ear.

Wally nodded enthusiastically. "Yes, that's his heartbeat you hear!" He repeated the gestures as he spoke.

The older man frowned and started to turn away when Wally took a chance.

"Wait," he said. He stopped just shy of touching the hunter. "We are looking for the jaborandi plant. Have you heard of it? Jah-bore-ahnd-ee," Wally sounded out the plant's name slowly.

The hunter stared at him, the frown never leaving his face, until finally he turned away again. But this time, he waved for all three of them to follow them toward the village barely visible down the hill through the trees.

They looked at each other and shrugged. What choice did they have? There was still the possibility that someone in the village knew of the plant they so desperately needed. Conner clutched Robin closer and followed Wally into the heart of the village.

* * *

"This may be our first bit of good luck since this God-forsaken mission started," Wally told him.

Conner was laying Robin down on the woven mat indicated by the woman tending them. He kept his head down rather than look at her. All she wore was a loin cloth similar to the men. Her long hair was all that covered her breasts, and although he knew it was just a cultural difference, he still felt uncomfortable looking at a female who was unclothed and so immodest.

Interestingly enough, girl-crazy Wally's attention was all on Conner and Robin. He barely even acknowledged that there was a woman in the room. He kneeled down on the other side of the boy; his hand stroking lightly over his face.

"We need to lower his fever. This high temperature might kill him before the poison does," Wally told him.

The young woman, it was hard to determine her age, patted the redhead on the shoulder. She mimed drinking and pointed to Robin.

"Uh, I don't know," Wally stammered. "Your water could cause him more problems." He held out his hands helplessly. "How do I explain this? Robin needs water desperately, but if it isn't boiled, it could hurt him."

"You could just tell me," another woman entered the hut behind them.

Wally leapt to his feet as both boys spun about in shock.

"You speak English," Conner said. This woman wore a sundress, thankfully.

"Sorry," Wally apologized. "He didn't mean for that to come out as an accusation. We were just surprised! And pleased," he added. "We need help."

"I can see that," she said. She spoke to the other woman and sent her out. Then walking further into the hut, she kneeled beside Robin in Wally's place. "What happened to him? Caua said he believed the boy was poisoned."

"Hah! You see? I told you he would understand that," Wally chimed at Conner.

"So, he _was_ poisoned," she concluded from that. "I suppose how that happened is of no relevance, since many tourists become sick from eating plants they know nothing about, but I can think of no plant that can cause all of the symptoms that Caua mentioned."

"We're not tourists," Conner told her. "The poison is not native to the rainforest, but the antidote is. My name is Superboy. And this is Kid Flash."

She tilted her head curiously, but didn't ask about the unusual names. "My name is Araci. And who is your young friend?"

"You don't recognize us?" Conner glanced up at where Wally was hovering over her shoulder to check his reaction.

"Should I?" She asked simply.

It was true, they _were_ a long way from the U.S. and Gotham City. Robin wasn't as well known around the country as Batman, but the Caped Crusader was even then only marginally known; unlike the more visible, personable members like Superman, Wonder Woman, or the Flash.

"I assume you haven't spent your entire life in this village," Conner stated.

She smiled. "No, I was sent to attend school and learn the languages of outsiders. I was chosen to be the village's spokesperson when dealing with others."

"And you chose to learn English?" Wally sat down at Robin's head.

"I learned Spanish and Portuguese as well as French and English," Araci told him.

"Have you ever heard of the Justice League?" Conner asked her.

"No. Is it important that I have?"

"No," he told her, and indicated the boy laying between them. "His name is Robin."

Wally laid a hand on her briefly and lifted it away. He didn't know the culture, and really didn't want to accidentally end up having to marry Araci because of his ignorance.

"We were told that the cure to the poison is a plant called jaborandi. It's supposed to be a kind of shrubby tree with black berries and feathery leaves," Wally asked her. "Have you heard of it?"

She nodded. "I have."

Wally and Conner shared a grin. _Thank God_!

"But it's considered a poison in itself," she told them. "Our shaman forbids anyone from gathering or using the plant."

"What?! B-But it's his only hope! He'll die without it," Wally cried out.

"Please," Conner asked. "Can you talk to him . . . Your shaman? Explain the situation?"

"Who is this boy to you?" Araci asked them.

"He's our friend," Conner answered immediately.

"He's our brother," Wally added.

"And he's a _hero_ ," Conner stressed. "He gives freely of himself to help other people."

Wally nodded. "He saves their lives at great risk to his own. Please," he entreated her. "He doesn't deserve to die like this."

Araci blinked and looked at the boy more closely. "He is just a child," she exclaimed. "How can he be this great hero you speak of?"

"Because that's the kind of person he is," Wally explained. "He's been doing the hero thing for a long time now. If he lives, he will continue to do it for a long time to come."

She was silent for a moment as she contemplated the boy in front of her. Without a word, she rose to her feet and left the hut; leaving Conner and Wally without any clue as to what would happen next.

* * *

Several minutes later, the first woman re-entered the hut carrying a cup of hot water. Steam rose from it. She handed it to Wally without a word and left.

He looked from the cup to Conner. "She boiled it. But we can't give it to him until it cools down." Wally set it down.

"Do you think Araci will be able to talk the shaman into giving us the plant?" Conner asked from where he sat next to Robin.

Wally sighed and dropped down to sit across from him. "I don't know. But if we don't get that plant soon, Rob's going to die."

Conner blew out a frustrated breath. He watched how Wally rubbed his foot through his boot. "How's your foot," He asked, concerned. "I noticed that you're not limping as much as you were."

Wally flexed the appendage carefully. "Better. I'm thinking that the bones have already healed, although it still hurts to use it. I wouldn't be surprised if they will have to be broken and reset again when we get back."

"But you can run?"

"It hurts a _lot_ , but yeah, I can run if I have to," Wally agreed. "But I'm not leaving you! I doubt I could find this place again anyway."

"Then we don't have to wait. You could go out and look for it," Conner suggested, ignoring Wally's doubt. "You're fast enough that there is no way they could stop you."

Wally shrugged. "But what good is being fast if I don't know that the plant looks like? The description that Poison Ivy gave us is so vague, it could be anything. I could pick something that might kill Rob faster!" His face darkened with anger." She _knew_ that we would never find it on our own. She _knew_ that Rob was going to die from her poison!"

Robin moaned. The sound was scratchy and hoarse. It sounded painful. His eyes, which had closed for a time, opened. They were dull and bloodshot; his pupils completely blown. His breathing was turning ragged and his hands came up to claw at his throat. His legs moved restlessly.

Wally grabbed his hands to prevent Robin from doing himself more harm. The yellow of his cape he had used to bind the bite marks was stained a rusty-brown color.

"Bat . . . man . . ." Robin reached out at the ceiling above him.

"Batman's coming," Wally told him soothingly although both boys understood that Robin couldn't actually hear them anymore. "He's looking for you right now."

The words were said by rote, without any emotion behind them. Robin had been asking after Batman or Bruce so often that the words of comfort had become automatic.

"You know," Conner injected. "He probably is by now. We were scheduled back last night."

Wally rubbed his eyes, and sniffled. "So, at least I'm not lying to him anymore."

Robin's face was contorted in pain, but he had no tears. He turned his head in the direction of the door, unseeing. "Bru-u-uce . . . Bru-u-u-uce!"

"Bruce is coming, Dick," he said. The tears Robin lacked rolled down Wally's face unchecked. "Don't worry . . . Bruce is coming."

"His name is Dick?"

"Yeah. He'd probably want you to know it now," Wally said, quietly.

"Who is Bruce? Is he the Batman?" Conner asked, softly.

It was kind of obvious from listening to Rob's ramblings over the last eleven hours, but it wasn't Wally's secret to tell. So he told Conner a version of truth.

"He's Dick's father."

Conner frowned. "He calls his father Bruce?"

Lacking the energy to explain his friend's home life further, Wally simply nodded. "Yeah, he does."

The mask was off, so it was Dick who stretched out his hand toward the door. "Bru-uce, please . . . Hot," he gasped. "So hot . . . help me . . . Bru-u-uce!"

Wally picked up the cup and waved his hand at super speed in an effort to cool the water down faster. When it was lukewarm, Conner held Robin up so that Wally could try to pour the liquid into his mouth. He choked, and the water sprayed out of his mouth and ran down his chin.

The boy's throat was too dry and irritated to swallow the water effectively anymore; too dry to accept the liquid that would him relief. Wally threw the cup at the wall of the hut in a rage as he realized that Robin could no longer even drink! The precious water flew in all directions as he covered his face with his hands and screamed out in frustration!

Conner laid Dick down gently, and climbed to his feet. He was done waiting! He would find the jaborandi, and to hell with the shaman's law!

Before Conner could reach the door, the curtain that covered the entrance was pushed aside. The older hunter entered with another man at his back. The second man was decorated even more vividly in painted designs; a streak of red and black across his eyes and forehead. He wore an elaborate headdress and had numerous piercings through his face, and a carved piece of wood ran through the septum of his nose; his earlobes were stretched to the point that they hung nearly to his shoulders.

Araci entered behind him.

"This is Caua," she said, pointing to the hunter. "You met him on the hunt. He's the chief of our tribe. And this is Ubirajara; our shaman. He came to look at the boy."

"The _boy_ is _dying_ ," Conner snapped. "He doesn't have time for people to 'look' at him! He needs the jaborandi plant! He cannot survive without it!"

Araci's eyes lowered to the dirt floor. "I am sorry. This is the only way. If Ubirajara agrees, then he will go out himself and bring you the plant you seek."

Conner grunted in frustration, and moved aside for the shaman to pass.

The man was small in stature; coming up only to Caua's shoulder. He waved Wally away and kneeled down to peer closely at Robin's face.

"Please," Wally begged. "Please, help us. He doesn't deserve to die like this!"

Ubirajara paused to look to Araci. She translated Wally's plea for him; holding out a hand beseechingly. She told the priest who the boy was to them, and that he was a great hero in the outside world despite his youth and size.

Ubirajara appeared unmoved, but spoke rapidly. He turned back to his examination. Araci looked disconcerted.

"What did he say?" Conner asked.

"He said, if the child is a great hero as you say, then this is the way he deserves to die." She held up a hand to forestall their outrage. "He said, that a great hero suffers much for the sake of others, and he is expected to die in the same way. For him to die in his bed at peace is an insult to the life he has lived."

"No," Wally moaned. "No, please! He's too young! He's only thirteen!"

"Robin has more to offer this world. It's too soon," Conner argued.

"It is for the shaman to decide," she told them quietly.

"He saved me, you know," Conner told her.

Araci blinked.

"He's saved me as well," Wally added quickly. "More than once."

She turned to the chieftain and spoke rapidly, and then to the shaman. The priest grunted as he poked a finger into Robin's mouth. The chief then spoke to his shaman with respect and deference. Finally, the shaman rose and turned to them; speaking in the tribe's language.

Araci listened carefully; frowning at his words.

"Ubirajara said that the plant you seek is very dangerous. He said that while he thinks it might help your friend and brother, it might just as likely kill him. He said he would be cursed if he were to personally harm a great hero by giving him a terrible poison. He said that he would let the gods decide your Robin's fate."

"What? We're supposed to just pray that he lives through this?" Wally asked incredulously.

"Prayer is a very powerful tool," Araci chided. "But no, that is not what he meant."

"Then what _did_ he mean?" Conner scowled.

"There will be a challenge that one of you must face. If you win, then Ubirajara will help him. If you lose, the tribe will help you to mourn him," she explained.

"What challenge?" Conner demanded to know. "We'll do anything!"

Araci looked at the shaman who rattled off something to the chief. Caua nodded, and then spoke to the boys.

"The challenge," Araci told them, "will be a simple test of strength. Your gods will endow you with great strength should they choose to honor the child with continued life."

"Done," Conner took a step forward.

Wally was more cautious. "You don't even know what the challenge is yet? Remember the collar? _Super_ boy isn't super anymore," he reminded him quietly.

Conner frowned. "Whatever it is, we will find a way to do it. Don't tell me that you won't try because I know you will."

"Of course, I will," Wally snapped at him. He was just worried. They couldn't screw this up!

"Come," Araci beckoned them. "You must come now. Ubirajara said, your friend and brother does not have long. The test must be done immediately so that he has time to collect and prepare the jaborandi for the boy if the gods show him favor."

Wally hesitated leaving Robin alone.

"Yara will watch over him," Araci promised.

Yara was the woman who had brought them the water. She entered quickly and quietly and kneeled down beside the boy. She began to sway and croon.

"What's she doing?" Conner asked.

"She is petitioning the gods to find favor with the boy and to bestow strength on his champion," she explained, quickly. "She will care for him. You must come _now_."

They followed her to the center of the village. It was small, so the boys could still see the hut where Robin rested. One of the men was setting up a cut log on its end. The log was about three and a half feet tall.

The chief walked to them and began speaking. Araci translated to them.

"One of you will extend the arm blessed by your gods and with it defeat the arm of strength of our greatest hunter, Joao." She waved an arm and the large asshole from the hunt was kneeling on one side of the log. He placed his elbow on the end of it and smiled at them.

Wally blinked, and then gasped. "Arm wrestling! They want us to arm wrestle the big guy!"

Conner narrowed his eyes and took several steps forward before Wally stopped him.

"Wait," he said. "Remember your collar!"

"I can take him," Conner growled.

"You could if the collar was removed, but there is no guarantee that you'd be able to do it with it on," he insisted. "This is Rob's life! We can't make a mistake here."

Scowling, Conner turned to face his teammate. "Then what do you suggest?"

Wally licked his lips and looked over Conner's shoulder at the hunter. "I'll do it."

" _You_? But I'm stronger than you even _with_ the collar on!"

"We need a solid win. There will be no doubt that the gods are with us if I beat him." Wally said.

"And how do you propose to do that?"

Wally grinned. "By doing what I do best!"

* * *

Wally kneeled across the log from Joao, the giant hunter of the even bigger ego. He put his elbow on the end of the log. Joao's forearm was longer than Wally's, and it placed the teen immediately at a disadvantage.

At the chief's signal, the two clasped hands. Joao said something to him, but Wally had no idea what he said without Araci translating. He had no doubt that it was meant to be insulting and condescending.

Joao grinned at him, exposing brown, stained teeth. Wally smiled back confidently despite the fact that he knew Joao planned to slam his hand down as hard and as painfully as possible. Joao's grin faltered and he scowled.

Laughter echoed around at the mismatch contest. Wally ignored it. Rob was counting on him and Conner had his back.

"When Caua speaks, the contest will begin," Araci said.

"Right," Wally nodded.

"I hope you know what you're doing, West," Conner whispered behind him.

"Me, too," Wally muttered.

"What?!" Conner gasped.

"TAI," the chief shouted.

Wally used his speed to slam Joao's arm down before the hunter's brain could even process Caua's word.

The crowd gasped.

Joao stared for several seconds at his defeat before roaring in anger and leaping to his feet. He shouted at Caua rapidly.

Conner was grinning, but he asked anyway. "What's he saying?"

Araci shook her head, still stunned at what she witnessed. "What? Oh! He's demanding a re-trial. He says that he wasn't ready and that your friend cheated."

Conner was offended on Wally's behalf. "He didn't cheat!"

The chief looked at Wally in awe. He nodded and Joao kneeled down in triumph; placing his elbow back on the log.

"What? Kid Flash clearly won that. Why is he challenging him again?" Conner growled.

"The gods don't make mistakes," she said. "If Kid Flash won the first round, then he can win the second round as well."

Wally grasped Joao's hand and tried not to flinch when the big man squeezed hard.

The chief stood next to them and watched carefully.

"TAI!"

Wally slammed Joao's hand down in the next millisecond. This time the crowd went wild! Many of the men leapt high in the air with shouts. The women hugged each other in delight.

Joao yelled and slammed his newly freed hand down in a rage. It didn't take a translator to understand what he wanted when he place his elbow back onto the log's center. Wally sighed, and grasped his hand again without prompting.

This time the chief kneeled beside them, even leaning forward a bit to better see.

"TAI," he shouted.

Boom! Wally's hand slammed Joao's arm back against the log in less time than it took one to blink. This time the chief jumped up and shouted. People were laughing. Conner patted Wally's back.

Wally took one look at his opponent, rolled his eyes, and placed his elbow back on the log. Joao immediately grasped his hand.

"TAI!" Someone other than the chief yelled the word this time, but the result was the same. The back of Joao's hand smacked the log almost before the sound of the person's voice ended.

"What are they shouting?" Conner asked when the crowd began to chant.

"They are shouting 'again, again, again'," she smiled.

Conner waved at the priest and the man approached warily; eyeing Wally nervously.

"Look. _He_ can do this all day," Conner pointed to Wally, but then he pointed back to the hut where Robin lay. " _He_ cannot. Your challenge has been met. Go and get the jaborandi. The gods have spoken."

Araci translated and the priest nodded his head, bowed, and left, grabbing a small boy on his way. Conner watched as he said something to the boy, and the child ran off and disappeared into a nearby hut. He reappeared only minutes later with a staff and a coarsely woven bag.

"He will return before nightfall," she told him.

Conner looked worriedly at the sky. The sun had just passed the mid-day mark. He prayed that it would be in time.

* * *

They were accompanied back to their hut by Caua, Araci, and several jubilant villagers, but the mood crashed when Yara burst from around the blanket that served as a door. She ran to the chief and began jabbering hysterically. Wally and Conner ran into the hut terrified at what they would find.

It was almost worse than they had imagined.

Robin was in the midst of a violent seizure. The two older boys threw themselves on top of him; holding the younger down in hopes of saving him from injury as his body convulsed.

"They're not stopping," Wally yelled at Conner; panic in his eyes and voice. "What do we do?"

Conner had sat down and pulled Robin against his chest; trying to hold his head still with one hand and wrapping his arm around the boy's torso. Wally laid over his legs.

"We hold on," Conner shouted.

An elderly woman appeared beside them with Araci.

"This is Maiara. She is a wise woman. She says the boy is fighting his fever. It must be brought down." Araci told them, touching the woman's shoulder.

Maiara did not speak, but immediately lifted a wet cloth from the bowl she carried. She began to wash Robin's face with it. After a few minutes, she muttered something and tugged at the boy's tunic.

"We must strip him down," Araci translated. "The water must touch his skin in order to steal the fever from him."

Wally straddled Robin's legs and worked frantically to work the fasteners free around Conner's arm. His speed was there, but in his fear, Wally's dexterity was almost nonexistent. As soon as he pulled the tunic apart, Maiara drenched Robin's torso with water.

Eventually Robin was strip down to his briefs and Conner and Wally were as wet as he was. It felt like a lifetime before the seizures ended and the boy lay exhausted and unresponsive on the mat. More water was brought in and the friends were shoved aside as several women in the village took over bathing the boy.

But it was no use. The second the women stopped, the water evaporated from the heat Robin's body was producing and his fever would spike once more. The women attempted several times to coax a tea that was purported to relieve a fever into him, but the boy couldn't swallow more than a few drops without choking. His eyelids were open, but half closed. If Robin was awake, however, no one was home.

Wally sat a few feet away, his arms draped around bent knees. He stared at the activity as tears rolled down his face. His best friend was dying and there was nothing he could do. Conner leaned against the corner of the hut; silent. His face was also wet. He wanted to rage and barrel through the village and surrounding jungle like a wild animal and scream, but he knew what Robin would think of that; think of _him_ should he act on his violent inclinations. So, he waited and watched helplessly; hating Poison Ivy for what she had done, but hating himself for his inability to save his friend even more.

Araci burst through the entrance to the hut and ran to them as soon as she found them in the dimness of the room. Wally stood up and Conner came forward to meet her.

"Ubirajara is back," she told them excitedly. "He found the jaborandi."

* * *

 **REACTIONS?**

 **Uh oh . . . Here are the last couple of symptoms convulsions and coma? Death would follow the coma, and usually is a result of respiratory or circulatory failure. Oh yeah, and don't forget to review!**

 **A/N:**

 **The "Ashinawa is a fictional tribe as I wrote this entire thing in seven days. I didn't have the time to put into picking one of the many indigenous tribes found in the Brazilian rainforest and researching them well enough. The Ashinawa is combination of _several different_ tribes. I just picked what I saw that was interesting or sounded cool . . . making my tribe a conglomeration of many.**

 **The word "Tai" that Caua uses to begin the arm-wrestling match means "Foot" in the Tuxinawa language (another Brazilian tribe). It was the closest thing I could come to the word "Go". I looked for a word for "One" (found many) thinking I could countdown, but all the words for one were all two-syllables, and I felt we needed a one-syllable word to start the match. As it was,** **"Tai" was my best option. What do you think?**

 **Oh, the names I use for the native characters are actual given names found in the indigenous tribes of Brazil (with the exception of Joao, which is a nickname common in Brazil. I ran out of boy names - there wasn't many listed. Maybe if I had more time . . . But I like this one and it seemed to fit well with the other names in that it didn't stand out as unusual.)**


	8. Chapter 8

**WARNING: Maybe Some Language, And A Rather Uncomfortable Topic . . .**

* * *

"Did you find anything?"

Superman landed beside Batman with a shake of his head. "No. No sign of Poison Ivy or the scientists that were working here. Whoever they were left few tracks. I lost them at the large river to the north of here."

Batman said nothing, but Superman had known him long enough to recognize that as a sign in and of itself. The Dark Knight was worried.

"You sure it was Ivy?" He felt the need to ask again. "She's a little far from Gotham City."

"There were clues," Batman said.

They were in rainforest, so Superman didn't know how he could tell, but he didn't doubt him. A breeze ruffled their capes as Flash skidded to a halt in front of them. Dirt and small pebbles showered their boots, but Batman ignored it.

"What took you so long?" The Dark Knight growled.

Superman rolled his eyes. Only Batman could get away with asking the fastest man alive that question. He revised his earlier opinion, however. Batman was worried _sick_!

"Hey, it's not easy to navigate this terrain, you know. It took a while, but I was able to follow their tracks to the river," Flash told them. "The rains nearly wiped out all traces of them."

"The river? They were following the people who were here, then?"

"No," Barry clarified. "There is a smaller tributary that cuts through the south. It's the same river that the boys had to have crossed to get here, but they took a route that is much further west than the one that they came in on. If I didn't know better, I'd say they were lost."

Clark frowned. "How can that be? You sent them in with equipment, right?"

"I did. Even without it, though, Robin carries a compass," Batman stated simply. "If they are off course and not following their targets, then it is likely that they were captured at some point and divested of their gear and Robin of his utility belt."

"I thought that you had rigged his belt to be impossible to remove by someone other than you or Robin?" Flash commented.

"Not impossible," Batman ground out. "It could be cut off of him, although the person doing the cutting would end up severely regretting his actions. But there is the possibility that Poison Ivy or whoever else captured him convinced him to give it up willingly."

"How would they do that? Losing the belt would leave him vulnerable," Clark said.

"Robin would do it if it was the only way to save his teammates."

Superman blinked at that. Robin was the only non-meta in the group of three boys. He supposed it was possible that Kid Flash might have run into trouble, but Superboy should have been invulnerable to injuries, like him.

Batman answered his unvoiced question. "Conner isn't an exact replica of you, Clark. His DNA has human elements to it. He's not completely invulnerable to injury. He _can_ be hurt."

"Conner . . .?" This was new information to him, but then Clark had been purposely avoiding anything to do with the clone.

"His name, Clark," Batman gritted out. "He has a name, now."

Superman frowned. Shouldn't he know that his clone's DNA had been mixed with human? He knew that he couldn't fly yet, but Clark had supposed that it was merely a matter of time. He, himself, couldn't fly until he was seventeen; instead he had been forced to leap large distances. He wondered now what other weaknesses the clone had. Kryptonite, certainly . . . Any Kryptonian DNA would be susceptible to the radioactive rock. But the men that had been here hadn't been expecting Superman, he was sure. His clone shouldn't have run into kryptonite.

"So, you think they were captured and injured, then." Clark surmised this much, trying to focus his attention back on the trouble immediately at hand.

"That would jive with what I found," Barry said. When both men looked at him, he cleared his throat. "I found blood." He met Batman's gaze. "And Robin's cape."

"Where?" Batman snapped the question out. "Show me!"

Superman wrapped an arm around the Batman's waist and flew after Flash; dodging trees where necessary.

* * *

They landed in the middle of a rocky beach next to the river.

Flash led them to a crude shelter made up of numerous thin branches with broad leaves woven in covering a section of a large tree's root system. The roots were enormous and the spaces between them were large enough for two or three teens to sit comfortably. At the back of one of the spaces was a swath of material. The bit of yellow showing was like a beacon.

Batman crawled in and picked it up. It was filthy and torn, and on one corner was a reddish-brown stain. Blood. He pulled out a light and shone it on the ground; locating several large splatters of more blood. His stomach clenched at the sight. He took what little comfort he could from the fact that there wasn't much of it, but it was clear that part of the cape had been used for bandages.

It didn't mean that this was Robin's blood. One of the other boys might have been injured and Robin used his cape to help him. Despite what he told Clark, the likelihood that the blood belonged to the clone was slender to none, but it was worrisome. Open wounds in the rainforest equaled the potential for serious infections, and they had already been missing for several days.

Batman had started searching the morning after they had failed to arrive back at the designated rendezvous point; giving them a few more hours in case they had merely been running behind. He had called in reinforcements after the first twenty-four hours hadn't produced the boys nor clues to their whereabouts.

Had the other team members not been on their own mission, he might have called them in first, but then he had found this place and signs of Poison Ivy. For all that she identified with Mother Nature, Ivy was not a motherly figure. Her hatred of the human race extended to everyone, no matter their age. To her, they were all a cancer; needing to be eradicated before they had a chance to grow . . . Or else they were a means to an end.

Clark had met her before; he was more than aware of the danger the woman represented. If Batman were to meet up with a super-powered puppet, he preferred to have back up capable of holding their own. And, like him, both Flash and Superman had a personal stake in the outcome. Clark, whether he admitted it or not.

"Batman?"

He looked up. "Someone was hurt. We need to find them."

. . . Or what's left of them. He left that part unspoken, but he knew the others had heard it anyway. It was what they were all thinking; what they were all afraid of.

"It won't be easy after this much time," Flash told him. "It was pure luck that I found enough of a trail to locate this place. The rain washes away everything."

Superman rose up several feet above them. "If someone was injured, they might have had to find another way to ford the river. I'll search the shoreline from the air."

Flash and Batman watched as the Man of Steel flew straight up and used his telescopic vision to look for another way for the boys to cross.

"It might not have been Wally who had been hurt," Batman said softly.

Flash shook his head. "If it had been anyone else, Wally would have raced them out of here, and the river's depths would not have been an issue." They were silent for a moment. "Iris is going to kill me."

They both knew that Iris wouldn't have to. If Wally was seriously injured or . . . otherwise, Barry would beat himself up enough for the both of them over it. But even that possibility did not ease Batman's own worry that the blood had belonged to a certain bird rather than to a speedster.

And then there was the problem of Superboy.

If either of the other two boys had been injured, why had the clone not used his abilities to get them to safety? The loss of their camping gear would explain much in either case, however. They could simply be lost.

But why wouldn't Robin have insisted on remaining in one place? He knew that it was safer in this instance to stay still and wait for help to come to them than to attempt to traverse the dangers of the jungle. Batman understood the need to distance themselves from the enemy, but why desert their little river refuge?

He had more questions than answers at this point, and what possible answers that were present didn't lend themselves well to his comfort.

Superman landed in front of them. "There is a tree that leans out over the river a couple of miles in that direction," he said, pointing to the west.

Flash frowned. "They are getting further away from their original route rather than closer. This makes no sense. What are they doing?"

"If they are lost . . .?" Clark began.

"They would have noted the direction the sun rose and set," Batman interrupted. "Flash is right. What they are doing makes no sense."

"It's like they were no longer worried about reaching civilization . . ." Flash rubbed a hand over his neck. "Could . . . Could they be looking for something?"

Superman blinked. "So, now you are saying that they aren't lost? What could they be looking for if it were not to follow their mission objective?

"We never said they weren't lost," Batman corrected. "But that they were no longer attempting to make their way back to the rendezvous point. What would be more important than reaching the rendezvous point, especially if one of them was injured?"

"It could be more than one of them that was injured," Clark told them. "From up there," he pointed to area he had been hovering, "it looks like a struggle took place here. It isn't noticeable from the ground, however, but I saw signs that rocks had been disturbed and moss had been scraped off."

"All the more reason to make it back," Flash argued, "not go deeper into the jungle."

"We can find the answers to our questions when we find the boys," Batman reminded them. "Lead the way."

"Right," Clark lifted Batman easily and began to levitate up. He wanted the detective to get the opportunity to see what he had.

Batman nodded. "A definite struggle," he agreed, glancing down at the scars the beach still bore. "Now, let's find them. They can tell us what happened easier than we can deduce it."

* * *

Flash stared at the tree in dismay.

"Are you kidding me? There's no way Kid would have crossed over this willingly," he stated. "The boy can barely make it downstairs to the breakfast table without tripping over his own feet!"

When the other two men looked at him, Barry shrugged. "Don't ask me. I don't know how he manages avoid road rash on a regular basis either." The irony was not lost on him. He smirked at Batman. "Yours is the only one of the three of them that isn't a bull in a china shop."

Unexpectedly, there was a splash and roar as a large black caiman crocodile burst out of the water near Superman. The Man of Steel moved back, twisting, as he caught the reptile's jaws in his hands and shoved it halfway across the river with one push. Suddenly there were several more crawling out of the river towards them.

"Uh oh," Flash flung Batman's arm around his neck and a second later they were both standing on the embankment above the river on the other side. "You don't think they seriously tried to cross here, do you," he asked as he stared down at the half dozen or so crocodiles that had appeared out of nowhere.

Superman flew over to meet them, frowning down at the angry crocs. "I'd like to think I'm wrong, but there was nothing else for miles in either direction. If they crossed at all; they did it here."

"They crossed here," Batman murmured, drawing their attention away from the violently churning river. He was kneeling a few feet away, next to a tree.

"How do you know?" Superman asked, stepping over to see what had Batman's attention.

He peeled a strip of bright yellow material off of the bark and held it up for their inspection.

Flash sighed. At least he knew that Wally had made it across the river of death in one . . . Well, mostly one piece. But there were no clues as to whether the other two boys had managed to make it across with him.

"There's something else," Batman announced abruptly.

Superman narrowed his eyes. "More than one somethings."

"What?"

"It looks like they had company at this point," Batman held up an arrow as Superman picked up a piece of beadwork with a feather worked into it.

"There's no sign of a fight, although the rain might have destroyed the evidence," Barry noted.

"If Conner had fought," Batman said, "there would have been more evidence than the rain could have washed away."

"Good to know," Flash commented. "I'll scout ahead and see what there is to see."

"Be careful," Batman warned. "You're not exactly wearing camouflage."

Flash ran a hand down his torso lightly. "Hey, I like red."

"Hm, doesn't show blood, at least," Batman remarked dryly.

Barry ignored the dig. He knew that the Bat was having a hard time right now; as hard as any of them. He gave a two-fingered salute and took off.

* * *

Footing was treacherous, and Flash wasn't as capable at moving at the speed he could attain on open terrain, but even then, he wouldn't be much more than a blur to any of the indigenous tribes that happened to be in the area.

He stopped at the top of a ridge and looked down at the small village below. Huts were placed sporadically in a circle around a central clearing obviously meant to be the village 'square'. He squinted at the activity going on below.

Several of the natives were clustered around something. After a few minutes, several of those below moved to reveal a familiar head of red hair topping the battered and weathered yellow and red costume of Kid Flash.

It was all he could do not to yell and run down to greet his nephew in order to reassure himself that the boy was truly all right. He looked around, but couldn't see any sign of Superboy and Robin, however, and this bothered him. The boy appeared unhurt, but he couldn't tell from this distance what sort of activity was happening.

Batman and Superman would want to be here.

 _Hang on, Kid_ , Barry thought. _We're coming_.

With that, Flash turned and raced back. He got lost along the way, but even still, he arrived back at the river embankment in less than ten minutes after he had originally departed.

* * *

"I found them," Flash blurted as soon as he stopped. "Well, I found Wally. I couldn't see the other two."

"Is he okay?" Superman asked.

"It was hard to tell," he answered uneasily. "Something was going on in the village when I got there, but he didn't appear to be in any immediate danger. Otherwise, I would have gotten him out of there right then."

"How far?" Batman demanded.

"Maybe four miles. You want a lift?" Flash offered.

"I'll catch one with Superman," he said, even as Clark lifted him up. "We'll follow you."

"Right," and then he was gone.

* * *

"Are you okay?" Clark asked him as they moved through the trees just fast enough to keep Barry in sight.

"Just get us there without running into anything," Batman growled.

"That's not an answer."

"It's the only one you're going to get right now," Batman snapped.

The truth was, he was terrified, but he wasn't about to tell Clark that. He couldn't admit that the relief he had felt when Flash had told them about Wally was fleeting and immediately buried beneath the worry he felt for the other two boys . . . For _his_ boy, Robin.

. . . For his _son_ , Dick.

* * *

When the three of them were standing atop the ridge, Wally was gone; disappeared back into one of the huts they could only suppose. Superman scanned the village for the presence of Robin and Superboy.

"There," he pointed to a hut on the far side. "I found them; all three of them."

"Are they okay?" It was Batman's turn to ask.

"I-I . . ." Clark hesitated. "I'm not sure."

Batman grabbed his shoulder and spun him around. "What do you mean, you're not sure?"

"There are a number of people in the hut with them. Superboy . . . Conner is sitting on the ground, holding Robin. Wally is kneeling next to them," He said.

"Holding Robin? Holding him how? Holding him down? Against him? Across his lap?" Batman growled angrily. "You need to learn how to get specific in your reports."

Clark blinked. "Holding him against his chest . . ."

And then he was speaking to air.

Batman spun and shot a grapple line into the tallest tree between their location and the village. The recoil sent him soaring high above the surrounding foliage. He swung out and released the line; flipping in midair to slow his descent and then extended his cape as an assist. He landed in a crouch on one knee; the cape settling around his shoulders like wings as he stood up in the center of the village. On a scale of one to ten, as far as dramatic entrances went; it was a twelve as natives screamed and ran in all directions.

Men burst from the huts, shooting arrows and throwing spears. Superman disintegrated three as he lowered himself to the ground; his own red cape swirling in the afternoon breeze. Flash knocked four more away as he seemed to appear out of nowhere. Batman caught the remaining arrow in a fist; several inches from his face.

"Where are they?" He demanded in a growl.

The natives fell back in awe and fear; talking amongst themselves.

"There were better ways to handle this, you know," Superman remarked with rare irritation. "They probably think you are a demon."

"If he's hurt, then that description wouldn't be far off the mark," Batman snarled.

He didn't wait. It was obvious that none of the native villagers spoke English. He stalked toward the hut that Superman had indicated. He ignored the natives and their weapons, leaving the others to protect his back.

* * *

"I don't want it," Robin whined.

He was in one of his more clear moments. The jaborandi had saved his life, but the preparation of the leaves and its method of administration couldn't match the purity of extract that Poison Ivy had injected the boy with. His body still struggled to throw off the effects of the belladonna poisoning.

The jaborandi's effects were nearly the exact opposite of those of belladonna. If it had been refined and administered in a hospital, it would have immediately begun neutralizing the symptoms that Robin had been suffering. As it was, however, the jaborandi could only ease them enough to keep Robin from succumbing to them.

The plant pulp was extremely bitter, and Robin continued to have difficulty swallowing the amount necessary to make an effective dose. As when the boy had fallen into a coma, there was still only one method of delivery that was available to them in which his body could absorb the dosage necessary to ward off the returning symptoms. And _that_ was their current matter of contention.

"Robin, you _have_ to have it," Wally explained to him again. "Your body hasn't rid itself of the belladonna poison yet. If you don't take it, you'll fall sick again."

Robin rolled his eyes behind his mask. They had replaced it shortly after the first dose of the jaborandi. They merely kept the lenses up now so that they could monitor his pupils.

"Again?" he snarked. "Like I'm not still sick now."

"Fine. _Sicker_ , then," Wally said. "It's not like you have any choice."

"There is always a choice! I could just die," Robin groused under his breath, and immediately felt guilty for it. His friends had suffered and sacrificed to save his life, and he was being ungrateful, he knew, but he couldn't bring himself to do what had to be done voluntarily.

Conner gave him a little squeeze. "We told them you are a great hero," he reminded the younger boy, gently. After days of this, they were becoming immune to Robin's crankiness. "You might start acting like it."

Robin snorted. That line had worked when they had needed to administer the antidote to him the second time, once he had awoken from the coma. But then Robin had experienced it. He glared at the half dozen people crowded into the hut with him. The chief, the shaman, and two women along with his best friends. That was five too many in his opinion. And he was expected to do this with those women looking on? Robin would rather take on the Joker by himself . . .

 _Okay_ , he grumbled inside his head. _Maybe not Joker . . . But he'd take on the Penguin or Riddler any day than have an audience for this_!

"Your fever is returning," Conner reminded him.

His vision was blurring a little again, too. Robin licked chapped lips with a too-dry tongue, and sighed. The symptoms just kept coming back. But as much as he hated them; he still didn't care for the cure.

"I know . . ." he admitted miserably.

Wally patted his arm. "When you are well enough, we'll be able to hike out of here. You won't have to ever do this again."

"Fine," he yelled, abruptly. "But everyone who doesn't have to be here has to leave!"

Wally looked skeptical. "You won't fight him?"

Robin ground his teeth together. "I won't fight him," he promised.

* * *

That _hadn't_ been their experience previously. The first time hadn't been a problem as Rob had been unconscious and incapable of fighting when given the treatment. But the second time, it had taken not only Wally and Conner, but Caua and Araci to hold him still enough that Ubirajara was able administer the second enema. Wally was just grateful that he hadn't had to be the one to give it.

The shaman had to draw the dosage into a long, wooden tube, insert it, and then blow the concoction into him. It had been horrible for everyone involved and Wally wanted nothing more than to go back to civilization where all your ills could be cured with a pill.

This was the third dose, and Ubirajara was confident that after this one, Robin would be well enough to handle the journey back to civilization on the morrow. That is IF they could convince Rob to allow it. Neither boy was anxious to have to wrestle their friend into submission if they couldn't get him to take it willingly.

"Why don't I believe you?" Wally asked.

Conner grunted. "Maybe because last time he said he wouldn't fight he blacked Caua's eye."

"I said I was sorry for that," Robin grumbled irritably.

Ubirajara said something and Araci translated for him.

"He says that the mixture is at its peak and for it to be effective battling the poison in his system, it must be given quickly. No more talk. We must do this now," she smiled apologetically at Robin even as she made the declaration.

Robin made an aborted attempt to swallow, but it continued to be difficult for him without saliva. He closed his eyes and whispered. "I wish Batman was here."

Just seconds later, screams and chaos erupted outside the hut.

The chief began yelling orders, and stood to go meet the challenge. Wally stood up with him. He, too, would do what he could to protect the people that had helped to save Robin's life. He and Conner understood well, that even had they found the jaborandi plant on their own, Robin would have died anyway because neither Conner nor Wally would have known what to do with it.

They were just about to leave when the blanket was thrust aside and a demon from hell, or was it an avenging angel, entered the hut.

Kid glanced back at Robin, astonished. "Are you kidding me? All you had to do was make a wish?"

"Where is he?" Batman growled.

Wally jumped back; pointing to where Conner stood in front of Robin in an effort to protect the weakened boy from the threat.

Conner stepped aside as Batman swooped in to kneel beside his son.

There were shouts now both inside and out. Araci grabbed Wally's arm.

"What manner of demon is _that_?" she gasped, cowering behind the speedster.

"That isn't a demon," Wally assured her. "Well, he's not unless you get on his bad side."

She stared in panic at the black figure who was hunched over the sick boy.

Wally sighed. "Sorry! Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. That's Batman. Believe it or not, he is a _very_ great hero where I come from, and Robin is his partner."

"Partner?"

After a moment's hesitation Wally came to a decision. It wasn't like these people would be chatting it up with the supervillains that Batman and Robin normally face. Their secret would be safe here.

"His son," the teen admitted to her quietly.

Her eyes were wide as Araci turned to relay the information to the chief.

* * *

Two more figures entered the already crowded hut.

"Kid," Flash grinned and hugged the boy. "You are a sight for sore eyes."

"Is everyone okay?" Superman stood next to Conner and asked.

"Robin should be fine with medical treatment," Conner reported.

He watched the reunion between Batman and Robin. With the blasted collar on, at least he didn't have to worry about eavesdropping on their private conversation anymore. Robin wrapped his arms around Batman's neck as the hero picked up his son. His eyes flicked over to where Flash was giving Wally another hug.

"Kid Flash had broken his foot. Although he can walk on it now, it hasn't healed well. He's probably going to need to see a surgeon for that," Conner said.

He was startled when a large hand came to rest gently on his shoulder.

"What happened here?" Superman asked next, fingering the tears and stains on Conner's shirt.

The clone shrugged. "Jaguar," he said as way of explanation.

"You have _scars_?" Superman exclaimed in shock.

Conner blushed. "Poison Ivy got the drop on us. She stuck me with this inhibitor collar. Without the tools in Robin's belt, we couldn't get it off. It's made everything a bit of a challenge."

Superman finally noticed the device. He frowned. Pinching the lock, he then crushed the device in his hand freeing the boy.

Conner felt a surge of strength immediately and slumped as the pain of the past several days finally faded away like a bad memory. He reached up and rubbed the raw place that the collar had left. The redness slowly vanished beneath his hand.

"The marks aren't going away," Superman noted with some concern. "Shouldn't they be going away?"

"Maybe it's because he's got some human in his DNA," Wally interrupted. "The jaguar he fought was actually able to pierce his shoulder."

"The cat left more than just marks?" Superman ignored the boy's flinch as he rubbed the marks lightly with his thumb.

Wally laughed. "He left an incisor the size of my thumb behind! Show him, Conner."

Conner pulled out the tooth and held it in his palm as everyone gaped at it.

"You took on a jaguar without your powers?" Superman asked him. "I'm impressed!"

Conner looked up at him for the first time since he entered the hut. "You are? Really?"

"I certainly could not have done a better job," he said giving Conner's shoulder a squeeze. "For what it's worth, Conner . . . I'm proud of you."

The smile was hesitant at first, and then grew bigger. "Thanks," he said. A thought crossed his mind, and he pushed through the group to stand in front of the chief. Conner held the tooth out to Caua.

"A gift," he explained to Araci. "It isn't much, but tell him that without his help; without Ubirajara . . . All of you; Robin would have died. And maybe Kid Flash and I would have, too. We owe your people more than we can repay."

Caua was impressed by the tooth and by the story that Araci had translated on how the boy had come to have it. He bowed deeply and spoke with sincerity.

"Caua says that the gods have blessed you, and by helping you, perhaps they will bless us in return," she told them; bowing as she gave her chief's words to them all. "Go in peace."

* * *

 **EPILOGUE**

"Hey, Conner," Robin called out to him as he entered the TV room. "I have something for you."

Conner frowned as Robin flipped over the back of the couch to sit beside him. One would never know by looking at him that Robin had been at death's door just a week ago. Robin handed him a plain white box with a red and black ribbon on it.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Open it and see," Robin laughed.

Taking the lid off, Conner gaped at the jaguar tooth he had given the Ashinawa chief before they had left the rainforest. He pulled it out and held it up. It had been cleaned and polished and mounted on a gold chain.

"How did you get this?"

Robin smiled. "Caua gave it to me right before we left. He said it belonged with a true hero; one who sacrifices much for those around him. I happened to agree with him."

Conner frowned and handed it to Robin. "It is for you, then."

Robin pushed it back. "He meant it for _you_ , Conner. I just wanted to make it a little special. You can wear it now!"

Wally walked in, then. He rushed over to gape at the jaguar's tooth as Conner was slipping it over his head.

"Ah, man! That is so cool! Wish I had a tooth on a necklace like that," he grinned, admiring it.

"Actually, you do," Robin said. He shoved another box at Wally; this one with red and yellow ribbon decorating it.

"What?" Curious, Wally opened the box and pulled out another tooth. It was large and sharp and impressive, but very different from the one that Conner had. "Where did this one come from? It's not a jaguar tooth."

Robin grinned. "Nope, it's from a black caiman crocodile."

The two boys blinked at him in surprise.

"How did you get a crocodile tooth?" Conner asked as Wally studied his new souvenir.

"Batman pulled it out of my boot," Robin told them with a smirk. "One that I was wearing while in we were in the rainforest."

Wally gasped. "Oh yeah! That croc almost had you for dinner!"

"But you managed to pull me right out of its mouth," Robin crowed. "Anyway, it was Batman's idea that I should have it made into a necklace like Conner's and give it to you." He turned serious. "I really can't thank you guys enough. I shouldn't even be here right now. I _wouldn't_ be if it hadn't been for the two of you."

"You would have done the same for us," Conner remarked. He fingered the tooth. The gesture touched him deeply.

"In a heartbeat," Wally agreed with Superboy, "because that's what all great heroes do."

Robin threw his arms around the two of them; gripping them tightly.

"Not just heroes, guys," he told them. " _Brothers_!"

* * *

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